Pokemon World Online
by Lonepichu
Summary: Twilmer is an admin for the internet game, Pokemon World online. One day she was sent to check out a glitch and was somehow transformed into a Pichu when she did so. Twilmer must now find a party to help her unlock the mystery of this glitch.
1. Daisies and Helium

Pokémon World Online

Chapter 1: Helium and Daises

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon, but I do own the idea, which I got from .hack, but since the characters don't appear in it, I don't classify it as a true crossover. Anyways, enjoy the fic!

Chapter updated! Enjoy sparkly new-ness and less oldness.

ooo

"I hate my life," Twilmer sighed as she glared at the many, many people that surrounded her. She only reached below their knees, counting her tall ears. "Why me?" Twilmer groaned, very unhappy that she was a Pichu. Many girls were squealing as she ran through town. They found the pudgy little mouse quite adorable.

"Fix the glitch, Twilmer. Find a party if you'd like, Twilmer. How does the PWO Corp expect me to do that as a Pichu?" she grumbled. Who would seriously think a Pokémon was recruiting a team? They would probably try to tame her to become their partner. A foot came down unexpectedly and Twilmer had to use a quick attack to avoid being stepped on. "That's it! I am so sick of this! An administrator for the biggest online game ever shouldn't be reduced to a stepping stone!" She yelled at no one. Most of the gamers looked down at her in shock. She continued her way angrily through the town, waddling awkwardly as she was unused to the stumpy Pichu legs.

She was tempted to log out and give up, but she very rarely turned the game off these days since she'd finally accomplished her dream of becoming a paid administrator. She now dedicated her full time to the game, Pichu or human.

Twilmer finally gave up on the town and quick attacked through as fast as she could. No help was going to come out of a place where everyone either wanted to pet or tame her. In Pokémon World Online, each player could tame one Pokémon to work with them. Often a gamer could go for months without a partner until they found one which could best aid them in their chosen class. For example, a swordsman would likely want a Scyther companion. Twilmer had been a grace master; a class that focused on agility and balance in battle and while exploring. Her partner had been a Sneasal; she hadn't seen her since she'd become a Pichu.

She looked around and noticed that she had arrived in Cobalt field, a large and open field where many first timers would come to get used to the game. Being a field, it was an ideal location for herbalists. This class focused on mixing different plants and herbs together to create potions and powders that could be used for attacking and healing. Fortunately, herbalist was one of the least popular classes and Twilmer figured she would be safe from trampling feet there for awhile so she could rest and think on where she should go next. "I could recruit an herbalist, but they aren't very useful," Twilmer thought to herself.

She walked through the field, lost in thought on how she could possibly get a high level player to help her, when a brown gloved hand stopped her in her tracks. "Careful, you almost stepped on a kitzu daisy," a soft, gentle voice warned. Twilmer glared up angrily to see that the brown gloved hand was connected to a male with auburn hair and green eyes. He was wearing a pink, herbalist robe.

"Who gives you the right to tell me what to do?" Twilmer snapped angrily, pushing his hand away. "And what's with the pink robe? Are you gay or something?"

"No, but this was the only clothing accessory I could afford at the time and it has grown on me. Ever since I bought it, girls seem to stray from me and I get stares. It's been hard trying to find a party to do quests with." Helium paused. "Wait a second, you talked?" The young adult man blanched as he looked at the Pichu, who was giving him a look that could kill.

"No, I chirped. Of course I talked. I'm the great administrator Twilmer. I was turned into a Pichu when this glitch I was sent to investigate messed with my character's data. Ever since then, I've been trying to find a party to help back me up since going at this on my own doesn't seem like it will work," Twilmer explained.

"Oh, I've heard of you from a couple of gamers on general chat. They weren't really the kindest people I've ever met. You don't seem snobbish or stuck up to me." He smiled.

"Yes, well, I think they were just jealous of my position. I am a rather busy and famous woman. Anyways, I would recruit you for my party, but herbalists are pretty useless. I suppose you will do until I can find something better." Twilmer waved her paw as if herbalists were far below a rodent who shocked itself while attacking.

"I'll be happy to join your party. No one's ever asked me to join their party before! Oh and if you couldn't tell, my username is Helium and this down here is my partner Gloom," Helium motioned to a drooling plant Pokémon by his legs, "and it's a pleasure to not only meet an administrator, but to join her party. I do have to disagree with you on one aspect, though; herbalists are not worthless." Helium smiled softly at Twilmer, who simply waved a paw as if the matter was too small for her to deal with.

"Yeah, whatever helps you sleep better at night. We still have many positions to fill and not much time left in the day, so you better not lag behind." Twilmer bustled off purposefully, which was rather hard for a small rodent to do. Helium took one step for every three of Twilmer's.

"I'll make her see how useful herbalists can be one day," Helium thought to himself as the two continued through the large field. About thirty minutes later, Twilmer was panting and slowing down.

"God, why did they make a Pokémon that has just feet and no legs? No wonder they're so weak if they can't even get anywhere to train due to these things they dare call legs," Twilmer whined.

"Do you want to ride on my shoulder?" Helium asked. Twilmer gave Helium a reproachful stare and continued on; too proud to admit that she was tired humphing at the very idea until she tripped over a rock. She laid there for a bit until Helium picked her up and cradled her in his arms. Twilmer was too tired to protest.

"Stupid tired level being higher for Pichus," Twilmer moaned in embarrassment as she was shifted to Helium's shoulder. "So," she began, trying to make conversation to bring attention away from her current position, "why'd you name your character Helium? Do you sell balloons or something?"

"As fun as that would be, no, that's not why. I was studying chemistry when I first started playing this game and the effects the elements of the periodic table had on different types of plants. Helium was the last element I tested, so I named my character Helium and I became an herbalist because I enjoy plants."

"Oh, that makes sense...I guess," Twilmer yawned.

"Look!" Helium pointed, stopping suddenly. Twilmer lazily opened one eye and say a field of flowers. "These are Hanna flowers. Their nectar can be made into a type of energy drink that can restore energy to tired muscles." Helium set Twilmer down and began to pick the flowers. He used his pestle to mash the flowers and produce a sweet smelling substance. "Eat this," Helium offered.

Twilmer eyed it warily. She wasn't familiar with potions and such made by herbalists, but she'd heard stories of how herbalists had said they were healing someone with a potion and ended up poisoning instead. "How do I know this isn't something that will poison me and you'll leave me here to die?"

"Trust me," Helium said. Twilmer sighed and took the potion. Frankly, the recharge time for a Pichu was just too long and she was useless completely fatigued like that.

"It's kind of sweet. Wow, I feel great!" Twilmer stood and began charging forward with even more fervor than before. "Didn't I tell you not to lag behind?" Twilmer looked over her shoulder at the herbalist. "We've got a party to form!"

ooo

End Chapter 1

Phew, the rewrite has made this part much smoother and smoothed out the nonsensical lumps.

Chapter 1 revised on: July 1st, 2009


	2. n00bs and b00bs

Pokemon World Online

Chapter 2: n00bs and b00bs

Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon or anything else like that. Here's part two of my computer game fic. I hope you enjoy my sense of humor. R&R please.

Chapter updated! Enjoy sparkly new-ness and less oldness

ooo

Twilmer stretched with a grunt as she stood up. She had idled in the field while she slept. "Ugh, my shoulders are so stiff," she yawned as she rolled her shoulders and did a few morning exercises. Toe touches became extremely easy as a Pichu. Helium had said that he'd login early to help her find a party, and she wanted to be in top shape so she wouldn't have to ride on his shoulder again. She couldn't bear the embaressment again.

She finished her exercises and sat on a large rock as she waited. Ten minutes later, Twilmer grew impatient. "That's it, I'm sick of waiting. He can find me on his map if he wants to be on my party so badly," Twilmer grumped, jumping off the rock and storming off angrily. She didn't really know her way around Cobalt feild. She never stayed there long when she passed through it in her earlier levels and never bothered to return as there was nothing of interest there for the Grace Master class. It was mostly a place for tamers and herbalists to gain fast levels and gather data on pokemon and plants, respectively. Grace masters usually perferred mountain ranges where they could push themselves by climbing or rivers where they could jump from rock to rock to push themselves and their pokemon partners. Cobalt feild was completely boring compaired to the places Twilmer trained. Where was the excitement in a flat field?

She hadn't gone far when an ear-peircing shreik made her cringe and fall over. "OMIGOD OMIGOD OHEMGEE! Itsa Pichu!" Twilmer saw a girl in what appeared to be a Bunneary suit running towards her. The girl then picked her up and squeezed her in a bear hug.

"Bones...crushed...HP...lowering..." Twilmer coughed, struggling in the girl's arms. Twilmer growled and let out a discharge of static electricity, which caused the rabid fangirl to drop her in surprise. "Just what do you think you're doing, crushing an admin with those arms of death? I should up your warning level for that!" Twilmer scolded, glaring at the Bunneary-suit clad gamer.

"Aww, a talking Pichu that thinks it's an admin; that's a game feature that I've never seen before. Lol!" The girl moved to hug Twilmer again, but she used a quick attack to dodge her.

"I should send a request to headquarters to model a boss after you. I am an administrator for Pokemon World Online. I am the great Twilmer, as I'm sure you've heard of me, and I will not be spoken to with such noobish speech. I just look like a Pichu because of a glitch that attacked my character data," Twilmer explained, quite irritated at the whole situation.

"Sure you are Miss Pichu. I bet I'll be the first tamer ever to tame a talking pokemon! Come on, Bunneary, we've got some work to do!" The girl motioned to her partner, a young female Bunneary. She bounced over and the two got on opposite ends of Twilmer.

"This is not going to end well," Twilmer's ears drooped. She could take the two on as a grace master with Victoria--her Sneasel partner--quite easily, but by herself and as a Pichu, it was quite a hopeless situation.

"Twilmer, is that you?" Helium's voice came from her right. "I'm not familliar with what party members look like on the map. I think you're this yellow dot." Twilmer's ear perked up at the sound of his voice.

"Help me! I'm about to be man-handled by some crazy noob!" Twilmer shouted. Helium ran over and laughed at the sight.

"Oh, you must be a tamer. I think I've seen you in the fields while I was training. I'm Helium and I'm an herbalist. This is Gloom," Helium introduced himself and his partner. "This is Twilmer and she's an administrator that was turned into a Pichu." Helium motioned at the angry Pichu.

"So she was telling the truth. How embarressing," the tamer laughed with a blush. "I'm Emily23 and I'm the best tamer in all of Cobalt. I've already tamed all the basic pokemon in this area and have distrubuted most of them, thanks to my handy game guide. This is my partner, Bunneary and my favorite Pokemon. As you may be able to tell, I got the 4th generation booster pack bundle with the basic game for my birthday and I'm now able to use 4th generation pokemon and items, hence my garb." Emily23 turned, showcasing her outfit. "It only cost me 2000 poke, which is a steal!"

"Only 2000? I should talk to the higher-ups about raising prices on ridiculous outfits such as this," Twilmer pondered with a paw to her chin.

"What did you say?" Emily23 glared at Twilmer and brushed a floppy ear out of her face. "This happens to be high fashion nowadays!"

"She didn't mean anything by it," Helium got between the two before the situation could get worse as Twilmer was sparking dangerously, though she was probably doing more damage to herslf due to Pichu's tendancy to also shock itself with its electricity. "She's just a bit testy after being transformed into a Pichu."

"You know, that's so odd, really. I've never heard of a glitch doing something like this, and nothing like this is in my guidebook." Emily23 looked thoughtful.

"Yes, and now she's forming a party to help her solve the mystery of this glitch and return her to her former self." Helium explained.

"I can talk for myself," Twilmer grumbled.

"I see! In that case, I would be happy to join your party. If the glitch is turning players into pokemon, then I want to be there to see it. I just love pokemon and it's why I became a tamer." Emily23 smiled at the two.

"I don't want you on our party. I barely want him on my party. You can't just invite yourself along." Twilmer turned.

"Oh come on, she might be useful." Helium offered.

"Yeah, she'll be useful if we ever need a n00b to admin translator," Twilmer sighed to herself. She just wanted numbers for now. She could be picky about who joined later. "Fine, whatever, just no hugging," she warned as they continued on their way.

ooo

"Some party we are," Twilmer complained as they entered a nearby town. "A tamer, an herbalist, and a grace master turned Pichu; if any glitch or danger appears here, our party is toast."

"Well, we may not be able to attack, but we can tame it if it's a wild pokemon, or we could give an enemy a status condition while we escape with my herbs and powder." Helium smiled, trying to get Twilmer to look on the bright side. She just looked up at him with a glare that told him keeping his mouth shut was a good option.

"At least we're in a city now. There's bound to be some people here who would be willing to join our party. Now that I have you two with me, I won't be as likely to get trampled. You're sort of like my own personal body guards," Twilmer laughed to herself as she toddled ahead of the two.

"That's big talk coming from such a little gamer," a snide, feminine voice remarked in amusement. The group turned to see a well endowed gamer standing near them.

"Elra!" Twilmer glared up at the woman, who was several more times her height. "I remember you. Before I was an admin, you used to always challenge me to matches and then you would cheat and beat me." Twilmer growled, sparks coming out of her cheeks.

"I didn't cheat, I just simply used my items. It's not my fault that your hands would get so sore from holding the controller that your attacks would become sluggish. You really spend way too much time online. Rumor has it that you haven't logged off in several months. Too bad your profile is set to private or else you could end those rumors." Elra smirked. "Personally I believe the rumors. The rumors of you being turned into a Pichu were right, so this must be as well."

"Don't believe everything you hear," Twilmer said angrily. "I should've known we'd find you in a city as badly programmed as this one. Come on, we don't want any party members from this city anyways." Twilmer began bustling away.

"You actually found yourself a party?" Elra asked, motioning at Emily23 and Helium.

"Hello, I'm Helium." Helium waved meekly.

"I am Emily23 and this is my Bunneary. I am the best tamer this game has ever seen. In just a weeks time, I tamed all the wild pokemon of Cobalt feild." Emily23 twirled; Bunneary twirling right beside her.

"Em, there aren't many differant kinds of pokemon that live in Cobalt, and most of them are bug or basic grass pokemon like Caterpie and Oddish. That's nothing to brag about," Twilmer shook her head. Emily23 lost her composure as she lost gripof her controller in real life.

"So? I'm a beginer! Cut me some slack! Besides, I'm very gifted for someone who's only been playing as long as I have, you must admit," Emily23 looked closely at Twilmer, waiting for some kind of agreeing emote, but she just stared back.

"Haha, how did I know that your party would be like this; a tamer and an herbalist, both low level at that and new to the game, with no attacker?." Elra laughed.

"I'm the attacker for this party. I'm a grace master, remember? Also I'm not that one that allowed Emily23 to join our party. That was laughing gas boy over there," Twilmer pointed at Helium, who shrugged it off.

"The attacker? You couldn't harm a Magikarp with that static of yours."

"Elra, I challenge you to a battle right here and right now! Grace master versus grace master," Twilmer stood in a fighting position with as much of a look of determination as a Pichu could get.

"Twilmer, don't! You're just a Pichu," Helium looked at her, "and Pichu are infamous for doing more damage to themselves that their enemy."

"Listen to your little boyfriend there. He speaks wisdom," Elra glanced down at Twilmer. "I won't battle you like this. As rivals, I want a fair match and I'm sorry, but a match against you at this moment wouldn't be fair." Elra turned and started to walk away.

"Elra, you come back here and fight me like a man...woman...whatever. For all I know you could be a man playing a woman." Twilmer called after Elra's departing figure. Twilmer tried to run after Elra, but Elra warped away. "I forgot she had a warp staff." The staff was the weapon of choice for the grace master job class and they came in many different varieties with different looks and abilities. Each class had a weapon only for them.

"Come on, Twilmer, we can find some other people to join our party that aren't such party poopers. Maybe we can find some hot men here!" Emily23 gushed.

"Hot men? You do know people make their appearances here look however they want. Didn't your mother tell you to never online date? Are you listening?" Twilmer shouted at Emily23, who obviously wasn't. Her attention was caught on some dropped money on the ground someone had forgotten to pick up.

"Ooh, with this I might be able to buy the new Bunneary taming pole. It's shaped like a bunneary on the flat end." Tamers used poles to tame pokemon with. The poles had two ends, one was flattened and used for guiding a wild pokemon and the other end was a blunt spear that was used for blocking and tiring wild pokemon and, in extreme cases, hitting them. "You guys wait here while I see if any of the local shops have it!" With that, she ran off.

"Like we even had a choice," Twilmer blinked.

"Hey, Twilmer," Helium looked down at her.

"Yeah?" Twilmer asked in a bored tone.

"Is what Elra said true? Have you not logged out in several months?"

"There's a reason why I keep my profile private. I'm sick of people making rumors from what information I had up on it." Twilmer grumbled and then cleared her throat, "Of course I log out every night at a reasonable hour and eat ample and healthy food while getting adequite exercise." Twilmer rolled her eyes. "I may spend more time online than many other gamers, but come on, this place is great. Pokemon World Online is much better than real life. Besides, I have a paid position here and it's my job." Twilmer shruged the question away. Helium sighed and nodded.

After several minutes has passed, the group was still minus Emily23. "What do you want to bet that the noob got lost?"

"Well, considering that she has yet to leave the Cobalt feild area since she began the game, I'd say it's not as likely, but she has been gone awhile. Do you want to look for her?"

"Might as well. It's not like we have anything better to do. Until we get some better jobs and gamers on this party, we'll need her." Twilmer and Helium set off to find Emily23, who had indeed gotten lost.

ooo

Part updated on July 6, 2009


	3. Lost Pokemon's Requim

Pokemon World Online

Login 3: Lost Pokemon's Requim

Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon. In case you were wondering, Bunneary is a 4th generation pokemon. If you don't know about 4th generation pokemon, then either go to or wait until the games come out on April 22nd (Earth Day) 2007.

ooo

"I am so glad to be out of Cobalt feild. I was sick of seeing feilds of flowers, no offense Helium, but flowers aren't my thing. All offense to you, though, Em, because I don't like you," Twilmer said in her usual cocky tone as she put her pudgy, Pichu arms behind her head as they walked along the trail that ran through Valum Forest.

"I know you don't mean that Miss Pichu. You're just sore because I tried to tame you LMAO it's okay," Emily23 laughed.

"It's still really weird hearing you talk to me like that. Haven't I told you to stop, n00b?" Twilmer complained. Helium just shook his head. It was another normal morning with the party they had started. Thier motley crew had had no luck finding anyone to join thier party in any of the Cobalt feild towns, so they had decided to head out.

"Oh, I bet there are so many new pokemon waiting to be tamed in this forest, right Bunneary? I can't wait to tame them with my new matching Bunneary staff!" Emily23 twirled the staff around and over her head.

"Hey, you're prettey good at that," Helium remarked, to an unapproving grunt from Twilmer. She was once again perched on Helium's shoulder, still not used to her little Pichu legs.

"It's not surprising. I'm a colorguard in a marching band in real life," Emily23 smiled at the compliment.

All of a sudden, there was a rustling heard from the bushes right next to them. Twilmer turned to see what it was, but everything was still. "Everyone, stand still," Twilmer commanded. The party obeyed and Twilmer looked around. Her ears perked up as she saw a shadow moving fast. "Something's circling us," Twilmer whispered.

"I can stop it with some of my stun powder!" Helium dug through his bag, adorned with cherry blossum designs, and produced a small pouch of what Twilmer assumed was the stun powder. Helium threw it out in all directions with the aid of his Gloom. They heard a soft thump as something hit the ground, stunned. The group ran in the direction the thump had come from and saw a Sneasal that wore a gold and silver necklace that was encrusted with amethysts.

"Victoria!" Twilmer ran to the Sneasal's side. helium quickly spread anti-stun powder over the sneasal, who looked up at Twilmer. "Victoria, it's me, Twilmer. Do you remember?"

"Sneasal, snea snea," Sneasal held her claws out.

"Hey, I can understand pokemon speech!" Twilmer looked shocked for a second, then looked crossly at Sneasal. "What do you mean I'm not your master? I am too. Do you remember the glitch? It turned me into a pichu and I've been stuck in this little pudgy body ever since, just about. I've been wondering where you went off to. I knew you'd be safe because of all the training we did together, so I didn't worry too much." Sneasal looked at Twilmer with a critical eye.

"Snea," Victoria replied, crossing her arms and closing her eyes.

"What do you mean 'you'll see?' Well, I guess if I were in your shoes I'd do the same," Twilmer sighed.

"Can I tame her?" Emily23 blurted.

"What? No you can't tame her, she's already been tamed. She's just a little confused." Twilmer looked crossly up at Emily23. Victoria looked up at the two of them and stretched, yawning in a manner that hinted at rudeness. She put her claws behind her head and opened one eye lazily. "Victoria always came across as a bit difficult to other gamers, but I know that she's got a really good heart."

Victoria was done talking and simply followed the three through the forest, hanging back a bit as if she were embaressed to be seen with them. "I don't blame her," Twilmer thought to herself, "I'm embaressed to be seen with this crew as well."

Valum forest wasn't a very big area and the path they were taking exited out into another feild. It was the sister feild to Cobalt and was appropriately named Tlaboc (which is Cobalt backwards). "I wonder what kind of plants are growing here..." Helium said as he looked around the vast feild. "Twilmer, can I look around, please?" he asked.

"Yeah and I want to see if there are any good tamable pokemon here," Emily23 stretched as she twirled her pole around some more.

"Sure, fine. I want to spend some time with Victoria anyways." Twilmer jumped from Helium's shoulder and landed near Victoria who barely shifted her glance. The three pokemon and three players went their seperate ways. Twilmer took Victoria to a small stream that was flowing gracefully through the feild. The bubbling sound it made was calming to Twilmer. She could've napped here if she didn't have more important matters to tend to.

"Listen, Victoria, I know I sorta abandoned you back at the glitch, but it's not like I could help it," she sighed. "Do you remember when this all started?" she asked, remembering back to when they first discovered the glitch...

ooo

"Twilmer, you've done a magnificent job as an admin so far and we've decided to raise your payroll." one of the suits at PWO Corp announced at a buisness meeting in one of the online meeting rooms. It was easier to meet in the game in designated areas than it was to meet in an office since people all around the globe had been made admins. This suited Twilmer fine since she had not logged out from the game or even stopped playing it in around eight months.

Twilmer beamed and could barely contain her enthusiasm. "Thank you so much, sir. This is truly an honor." She bowed humbly. Out of all the members of the admimistration team, she was the only grace master and it was the way she liked it. She wore a close fitting, purple leotard and a cloak of white over it that was adorned with many intricate designs of amethyst and silver thread work. The ends of the robe were lined with fur. She had on white knee boots that allowed for easy travel through the lands of Pokemon World Online. Her white hair was held back with a gold ribbon.

"As one of our most trusted admins, we have a mission to assign you," one of the suits stood and handed her a folder. "Inside you will find all the information you will need about a glitch we discovered in the system."

"What kind of glitch?" Twilmer asked. Usually glitches were dealt with swiftly by lower members of PWO Corp if they were minor.

"This glitch appeared recently in the Firewall Moutains and seems to be connected in someway with the Ho-oh event we planned there. A large slash-like portal appeared there and is slowly changing the data for this area. We've already made it off limits to players, and some of our lower members accounts were deleted when they tried to deal with it, which is why we've decided to send you. You're the only one who can fix this glitch."

"I've got it sir. I'm off to deal with it right away," Twilmer saluted before she and Victoria hurried out of the building. Twilmer found a warp key in the file. "At least we don't have to walk the whole way," she smiled as she and Victoria warped to Firewall Mountain. "Now let's see," Twilmer scanned the area and then gasped. The suits were right. It looked as if a giant Sneasal had completely slashed a portal into the data. The wind was harsh in this area and it seemed to be pulling everything towards the portal.

"How in the world do the suits expect us to fix this glitch?" Twilmer pondered as she scanned the files as best she could in the wind. "Victoria, get ready! Try and use and icebeam to see if we can freeze the data flow!" Twilmer shouted over the data. Victoria nodded and got into position. "Now!" Twilmer shouted. Victoria released the icey beam towards the portal, which stopped the winds, but Twilmer still felt drawn to it. "It didn't work the way I had hoped it would." Twilmer grumbled.

She used the full power she had as a grace master to gracefully hop from rock to rock on the mountain and get as close to the portal as she dared. "This isn't an ordinary glitch, or even a hacker. What on the internet could this be?" Twilmer could feel the data of her charcter being drawn to the portal. She agilely made her way away from the portal and back to where she had first arrived in the mountains. "Okay, the main frame should be right around here for this area..." Twilmer lifted a rock and found the hidden information box. "Okay, let's see what I can do."

A screech scared Twilmer and she turned to see the Ho-oh of this area flying straight at her. She dodged, however the fire bird aimed a flamthrower at Victoria. "Victoria!" she shouted, to no avail. The winds suddenly burst through the ice and blew Victoria away from the area. Twilmer tried to get away, but the pull of the wind was too strong. Twilmer closed her eyes as she was drawn to the glitch, only suddenly the game froze. Twilmer walked around and saw that the bits of dirt and rock that had been caught in the wind were still. The Ho-oh was also frozen in midflight.

Twilmer heard a weird chiming sound and her vision began to get hazy. She fell over and fainted. When next she woke, she was in the middle of a town, alone and found out that she was a Pichu. The suits had contacted her and told her that the entire mountain area was now frozen, though they didn't know for how long. They still wanted Twilmer on the mission, but they suggested that she find a party to help her.

ooo

"It hasn't always been easy, this admin job. At times I think that I've bitten off more than I could chew, but I love this world more than the one I actually come from. To me, Victoria, you aren't just a bunch of data. To me you're real." Twilmer sighed, laying back on the grass. Victoria looked over at her and closed her eyes, smiling. As she lay back on the grass next to Twilmer, she finally believed that Twilmer was who she said that she was.


	4. On the Defense

"It's been awhile, Demetrius, or should I say Helium?" a boy wearing sunglasses and cargo pants with a blue top joked. They were playing a game of soccer.

"You've been spending way too much time on that web game. Don't you know that you should limit your time? This past week it seems that all you've been doing is playing that game. You've missed all of our soccer games," a short kid with silver hair and glasses gave him an accusing eye.

"I just found a party and I've been helping the admin to try and find more members so we can have a decent party to try and fix this glitch in the game. So far it's just me, her, and a newer player." Demetrius explained. He hit the ball off of his head and passed it lazily to the boy wearing cargo pants.

"An admin? What makes you so important all of a sudden? I was into that game once, but all of the gamer babes were already taken," cargo pants kicked the ball back to Demetrius.

"Jason, it's not all about cute gamers. There's great story and depth as well," Demetrius tried to explain.

"Sure, flower boy. So, who's the girl?" the boy wearing glasses looked up at him from the book he was skimming through.

"Well, Ben, I'm in a party with two girls, Twilmer and Emily23. Twilmer's the admin and she's been turned into a Pichu because of the glitch." Demetrius passed the ball back to Jason.

"Ah, Twilmer? She's that snooty admin that no one can stand. I quit when she scolded me for speaking l33t to her." Ben sniffed, turning a page in his book.

"I thought you quit because she beat you in battle and all the other players made fun of you," Jason laughed, keeping the ball in the air by hitting it with his knee. The three of them were hanging out near their college dorm room. It was summer, but the three had decided to stay over the summer to get more study time in since they were all taking advanced classes the coming semester. "Is she hot?"

"I don't know, her profile is set to private." Demetrius sat down next to Ben when it became apparent that Jason had no intention of giving the ball back.

"I bet she is. She acts like she's self confident and preppy. My kind of girl," Jason grinned as he continued to show off his soccer skills in hopes that any passing girl students would notice, "but it sounds like you've got the hots for her."

"How do you figure?" Demetrius asked inquiringly.

"Well, why else would you be glued to that game screen like you are? Plus you seem happier this week. All are likely signs of a crush," Ben pointed out matter-of-factly.

"She's got a great personality, but I just want to help her. I've got the sneaking suspicion that she's been playing that game for eight months straight without logging out once," Demetrius sighed. He really was worried about his new friend.

"Sure, whatever. You were always the sensitive one." Jason finally succeeded in getting the attention of a group of girls. "Catch you guys later," he called to them as he walked away.

"How does he do that?" Ben sighed, closing his book. "I'm going to the library. See you later, Demetrius."

"I guess it's time to log back on and help Twilmer," Demetrius smiled as he headed to his and Ben's dorm room.

ooo

Pokemon World Online

Login 4: On the defense

Disclaimer: Yo no owno. Well, I've become slightly obsessed with this story. The bit before this was to show that people (with the exception of Twilmer) have lives outside of the game.

ooo

Helium stepped put onto the path where Twilmer was sitting on a rock. "It's about time you showed up," she said without looking up at him. Her Sneasal was sunning it's self on the path opposite Twilmer. "I was forced to look at your profile because I was so bored. You know your charcter modle looks exactly like you do in real life, minus the robes, according to your profile pic."

"Yeah, I know. I couldn't think of anything special for my charcter, so I just went with how I look in real life. What about you?" Helium asked.

"I know it's based off of how I look in real life, but I don't remember exactly how I looked. I haven't looked at my profile picture in so long that I kinda forgot," Twilmer rubbed the back of her head and smiled in embaressment.

"You don't remember what you look like in real life? How's that possible?" Helium looked at her with that knowing look of his that Twilmer had grown to abhor.

"Err, I mean my charcter. I've been a Pichu so long I forgot what my..." Twilmer stopped knowing that she wasn't going anywhere in trying to convence Helium. "Oh yeah, the n00b, Em, sent me a PWO mail saying that she wouldn't be logging in today. She has band camp or something like that. She might be on later if she's not too tired. We may as well look for any team mates in the mountains."

Helium looked at her questioningly, but didn't say a word. They were walking through the Cordoroy mountains and mountains were a grace master's favorite landscape. There was no need to spoil this for Twilmer. "She's had it rough. I don't know that I'd do if my charcter was turned into a pokemon," Helium thought to himself. The landscape sure was beautiful and a sigh from Twilmer showed that she felt at home.

"I haven't practiced my grace master techniques since I became a Pichu. I'm going to be so rusty when I get changed back. I know, I should practice now!" Twilmer's cheeks sparked slightly as she looked at the rocks surrounding the mountain.

"Are you sure? I mean you're just a little Pichu..." Helium trailed off as Twilmer jumped form rock to rock, doing arial twists and turns as she jumped.

"Oh yeah! I'm glad I now agility now! If I could have a speed boost like this in my normal form, I'd definately be the greatest gracemaster to ever live!" Twilmer shouted in exhileration as she leaped back and forth, however she miscalculated a step and began to fall from a ledge.

"Twilmer!" Helium shouted, running to where she was falling, hoping that he could catch her, but he couldn't get there in time.

"Ahhh...huh?" Twilmer landed suddenly on something that felt like a balloon. She looked down and noticed a gamer below her using a Jigglypuff sheild.

"Good thing I didn't sell this shield back in Marygold. Are you okay little guy?" the gamer asked. He was obviously a defender. His partner, a Machop, leered at Twilmer.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm not a guy either and you'd do good to remember that when speaking to an admin," Twilmer humphed as she slid off of the sheild. Helium ran up to her, gloom and Victoria in tow.

"It talked!" the defender looked very confused.

"Why do I have to go through this with everyone?" Twilmer sighed, shruggung. "Yes I talked. I'm not really a pichu, I was just turned into one when I approached that strange glitch, yada yada blah blah. Do any gamers check the message boards? Surely the PWO suits have posted something about this on there."

"Is this true?" the defender asked Helium. Twilmer's cheeks began to spark and she did not look very happy that the defender did not believe her.

"Yes it is." Helium responded simply as he held back Twilmer, who looked about to tear the defender's face off. "Would you like to join our party? We don't have a defender."

"You always invite people along that are very annoying, you know that? I don't want him on our party. We don't need another useless non-attacking charcter. We already have a tamer and you, like we really need him. If it was up to me, it'd be just me and you so far." Twilmer complained as Helium held her so she wouldn't attack.

"Oh, I see. Is this one of those girlfriend and boyfriend teams?" the defender asked.

"WHAT?" Twilmer shreiked a squel that rivaled those of Emily23. "What makes you think I would like this weirdo? He's wearing a pink robe for crying out loud and he keeps asking questions that aren't any of his concern. Also he's a good friend and the only person who can put up with me and..." Twilmer looked up at Helium and blushed lsightly. Helium noticed but, as usual, said nothing. "Whatever, so do you want to join our team or not?"

"My name's shieldlover because it was the only name I liked that hadn't been taken yet when I joined. This is my Machop and we would be delighted to join your party, but we don't really want to make a party just yet. I was hoping to join the elite defender sqaud soon. If you'll give me your PWO mails, I can mail you if I change my mind."

"I won't, but I'm sure Helium will." Twilmer glared up at shiellover. Helium gave out his PWO mail address and the two walked away from the defender. Helium waved goodbye, but Twilmer ignored him as if he didn't exist. "How could he pass up the chance to join our team like that? I'm an admin for crying out loud! I've never had a party for sure, but you think people would be jumping at the chance to join me. So far all I have is a n00b and...well...you."

"Is that a bad thing?" Helium asked.

"No, not really. You're herbs helped reunite me with Victoria and I'm thankful for that. I admit, you've been a better party member then I thought you would be, but Emily23 is completely useless. All she does is prod me with that taming pole and squeal at my cuteness or whatever."

"That's the second person who seems to think that we're together," Helium commented, remembering thier encounter with Elra.

"I don't know why either. Relationships are all pointless. All they're filled with is pain and misery. In fact all of life is. It's much better in this world," Twilmer sighed, looking up at Helium.

"Not all relationships are pointless, and they certainly all aren't painful. I've only ever been in one and all the guys make fun of me because of it. It did hurt at first, but I eventually learned that life is bigger then such pains as that." Helium looked at Twilmer. "Not trying to imply anything by this, but I can't see why anyone would hurt you. I know I wouldn't."

Twilmer looked up at Helium and opened her mouth to say something, but stopped. "It's hard to explain and I really don't feel like explaining it right now anyways. Let's just say that not all guys are like you. Some are real jerks who build you up and act as if you mean as much to them as they do to you, and then they leave you for your best friend because you're of the 'abstinence until marraige' viewpoint. Then when you find out, they act like it's your fault and demand all the stuff that they gave you back without offering to return your stuff back to you." Twilmer stopped walking, still not facing Helium.

"When did this happen?" Helium looked at his little friend with concern.

"Eight months ago," Twilmer started walking forward again and tripped over a rock. She sat up and sighed, "Can I ride on your shoulder?" she asked.

Helium smiled and held his arm down to her. "Sure, anytime you need to." Twilmer climbed up and the two continued their way peacefully through the mountains, until Emily23 showed up from band practice and annoyed Twilmer once again.


	5. Elite Shield Mountain Squad

Pokemon World Online

Login 5: Elite Shield Mountain Squad

Disclaimer: I don't own the vast majority of this stuff. This is becoming one of my longest fics, simply because I'm actually sticking to it. After I finish this, I'll promise I'll go back and finish my other fics.

ooo

"I don't like the mountains,"Emily23 complained, throwing up her hands, "because there aren't any cute pokemon living here. It's just Geodudes and Machops and occasionally a Sandshrew, but I don't want to tame one of them."

"You complaining about this game's programming is getting on my nerves. Like you would even know how to do half of the programming for even one of these rocks." Twilmer complained from her perch on Helium's shoulder.

"There's a lake coming up soon where you might be able to tame some hardy water pokemon. Twilmer, I don't think she was making fun of this game's design. She just likes cute pokemon," Helium explained. He always tried to be the peace-keeper.

"I know, I'm just tired. I didn't sleep well last night." Twilmer yawned and began to snooze on Helium's shoulder.

They came to the lake several minutes later, just like Helium had said. The lake was fairly large and many different kinds of wild grasses were growing around it. "I wonder what kind of plants are here," Helium wondered. He set Twilmer on the ground and began to observe the different types of grass.

"Oh! Look at that!" Emily23 shrieked in girlish glee. Twilmer was scared awake by the sound the fangirl was making. She turned to see Emily23 cooing over a slowpoke.

"There are so many mean things I could say right now," Twilmer walked over to Emily23 and the slowpoke.

"Stand back, Twilmer. It's time you saw a tamer in action!" Emily23 twirled her taming pole over her head and faced the Slowpoke.

"Oh yeah, this is the match of the century, folks," Twilmer said sarcastically as she raised an eyebrow.

Emily23 held the pole down to the Slowpoke, who turned the opposite direction and tried to head back into the lake. "No you don't!" Emily23 shouted as she placed the flat end of the pole in front of Slowpoke. He stopped heading for the lake and turned around. He glared at Emily23 and used a water gun. Emily23 used the flat end of her pole to block the attack from hitting her.

"Okay Bunneary, it's time for you to take the stage!" Bunneary leapt forward and used a double team attack to surround the slowpoke. Bunneary then began to sing a soothing song that surrounded the slowpoke and seemed to relax his muscles. "Okay Bunneary, I'll take it from here." Emily23 twirled her staff then touched the center of Slowpoke's forehead with it. The Slowpoke slumped slightly, then stood up and yawned.

It walked toward Emily23 and looked up at her. "Yes! We did it! We tamed Slowpoke!" Emily23 jumped up and down; the ears of her costume bouncing with her. She hugged her Bunneary as the two of them celebrated.

"Not bad," Twilmer complimented. "Though it was just a slowpoke," Twilmer shrugged. Victoria didn't seem very impressed and went back to trying to slash passing Magikarp along the lake's shore.

"Twilmer, I want you to name him," Emily23 smiled at the admin.

"Me?" Twilmer blinked, surprised. "I was never very good with names, but if you want me to." Emily23 nodded. "How about, Max?"

"That sounds good to me. What do you think?" Emily23 asked the Slowpoke. It yawned. "I'll take that as a yes," she giggled.

"Hey guys, I found some juniper weed here. That can make a really powerful escape powder." Helium held up the red-tipped weeds that he had picked, then put them into his bag. "Lucky for me, Gloom is able to detect the pollen from rare plants like this."

"That's…" Twilmer began, but did get to finish as the ground around them began to shake. "We haven't programmed earthquakes into this area!" Twilmer shouted.

"That's because this isn't an earthquake. Look!" Helium pointed to the crest of a nearby hill. There was a herd of Tauros approaching them and each had a rider, except for one man who ran along side them with a Machop at his heels. "Is that sheildlover?" Helium asked.

"I guess he did get into the whatever he wanted to join," Twilmer mused.

The group came to the lake and stopped when one of the riders, Twilmer assumed he was the leader, blew on a horn. "Halt!" The rider called to the party. "What means you two coming to this lake with not but four pokemon between you? This lake is private and belongs to the Elite Shield Mountain Squad."

"Two? Oh come on, I know she's a n00b, but she counts as a player too. Also, she's not a pokemon, she just looks like one." Twilmer stepped forward and spoke.

"What means this? A talking pokemon?" the leader looked at Twilmer questioningly.

"A talking-oh yeah, I forgot," Twilmer sighed.

"Ahh, this is the group I was talking about before. This is the admin that needed help with the glitch." sheildlover came forward with his Machop.

"You mean to say that thou story was not frivolity, but an actual tale of truth?" the leader slid off of his mount and walked over to Twilmer and her party.

"Why are you talking like a bad fantasy novel? As an admin, I demand proper English to be spoken to me. None of this l33t crap and none of this 'thee' and 'thou' shtick either," Twilmer grumped as she looked up (and up) at the leader.

"Who are you to talk to the leader of the Elite Shield Mountain Squad like that," the leader grumped, "especially I, King Phillip III, the leader of the ESMS?"

"I'm an administrator for PWO and I can assure you that no area is private to any players, except the section the PWO Corp sealed off for admins, suits, and employees only. You can't claim a lake and not let anyone in it. You wait until I report this to headquarters. They'll disband this stupid little party of defenders so fast that you'll wish you'd never bought this game." Twilmer ranted.

"Oh, lady admin!" King Phillip III bowed deeply and the rest of the group slid off of their mounts and did the same. Twilmer blushed at this, not really knowing what to say. "Please forgive us. We will indeed no longer claim this lake as our own property. In addition, we will make you an honorary member of the ESMS."

"Uh, that's okay, really. I mean I'm a grace master, so I don't have much use for a shield squad, but perhaps if one of your better members could join our party. We're a bit lagging in the attack department, but we may as well have a defender." Twilmer looked up at King Phillip III. She assumed that a party that called themselves the Elite Shield Mountain Squad would have at least one good defender in their ranks. "Alright then, sheildlover, you said you wanted a final test of your loyality and strength?"

"You have got to be kidding me," Twilmer smacked her forehead.

"Would you be willing to assist these fellows in thier noble journey?" Twilmer fell over at this statement and shook her head. shieldlover stepped forward and bowed.

"Don't you have anyone else? This guy doesn't even capitalize his screen name," Twilmer groaned.

"I shall do my best," shield lover bowed to King Phillip III. Twilmer shook her head as he and his Machop walked over to Twilmer's group. Twilmer just stared at him as he waved goodbye to his fellow ESMS members and they galloped away.

"Great, could I at least use my powers of admin-ness to capitalize the first letter of your name?" Twilmer crossed her arms and glared at him.

"To be honest, could you completely change it? I don't like this name, I just took it because I thought it would make it more likely for me to get into the squad. If you could, can you change it to Ontaro?" sheildlover asked.

"Done and done," Twilmer brushed her hands together and jumped back onto Helium's shoulder. "Well, let's not waste anymore time in these bizarro mountains. I swear, the most unusual people play this game."

The four and their five pokemon set out through the mountains to adventures and (in Twilmer's case) annoyances.


	6. To be a Pokemon

"Emily, honey, you've been spending way too much time on that game lately. Everyday after band camp, you run home to get on that thing. I think you should take a break for the rest of the week," EMily's mom suggested as she stirred the noodles she was cooking on the stove. The spicey arouma of spaghetti sauce filled the air.

Emily looked at her and placed a hand on her hip. She flipped her long, blonde hair back and huffed. "You can't do that! I finally got the hang of the game and have joined a halfway decent party. If I miss a day of play, who knows what I'll miss? Besides, I've really been limiting my times and it doesn't interfere with my social life, so don't worry about it."

"If you say so, but I'm going to discuss this with your father." Emily's mother taste-tested the sauce. She added some more spices and began to stir the sauce.

"What's he going to do about it? He never does anything! All he does is sit in that chair of his and watch tv. He can't even come to any of our band competitions or even the football games that we play at." Emily looked exasperatedly at her mother.

"Your father works all day, honey. He's just trying to support us since I'm out of work now."

"You always stick up for him!" Angry tears came to Emily's eyes. Perhaps she was being a bit unfair to her father, after all he did work in one of the best offices in New York City, but he always had to work whenever she needed him and on his days off, he was so worn out that he didn't have time for her. "Whatever," EMily stomped up to her room and slammed the door. She picked up the virtual reality helmet and placed it on her head. She flipped on the power and waited for Pokemon World Online to load. When it had, she picked up the controller and entered her password, ready to begin another adventure.

ooo

Pokemon World Online

Login 6: To Be a Pokemon

discalimer: Yes, I'm trying to make Emily23 more likeable. I realize that she's a n00b, but...yeah... Anyways, I don't own pokemon or the inspiration for this fic (.hack legend of the twilight) either. Sorry for the spelling mistakes too. I'll fix those as soon as my dad re-uploads spell checker (a virus wiped it out). Like Twilmer, I have no life outside my PC and am trying to give you guys a part at least once every two days ;

ooo

"Your late," Twilmer announced as Emily23 appeared on the trail where Ontaro, Helium, and their pokemon were waiting. "I bet you're not late to band practice."

"I had an arguement with my mother. They think I've been spending too much time online," Emily23 grumbled.

"My room mate and my friend Jason think I've been spending too much time online. It's not true though, I study just as much as I'm on here." Helium looked up at Emily23, brushing a bit of dirt from his pink robes.

"Studying? You sound like oodles of fun in real life," Twilmer commented as she stood up and walked to the center of the group. "Okay, as an admin and most important member of this party, I think that we should try the Gandrum Valley Town to search for some attacking party members. The town is only about a days walk from here."

"What? There's a town on the mountain crest that we could go to and it's only about twenty minutes away," Ontaro looked at her incredulously.

"There are only defenders and grace masters up here and we already have one of each. There are bound to be swordsman in the valley, so we head that way. Now I suggest you never argue with me again if you don't want your warning level upped." Twilmer glared at him.

"We have a grace master?" Ontaro looked down at the little Pichu who would have been giving him a murderous look if she didn't have such an adorable face.

"Miss Pichu is a grace master!" Emily23 exclaimed. "She keeps it real."

"How many times do I have to tell you not to call me Miss Pichu? If you insist on giving me a nickname, then you can call me 'Miss-better-than-me-Twilmer. I actually like the sound of that..." Twilmer got a pensive look in her eyes. "Also, don't say 'keeps it real.' because you are not cool enough to use that phrase."

"I'm cool in real life," Emily23 pouted.

"Maybe so, but here you are just a n00b. Anyways, if we don't have any other objections, then lets..."

"BRB," Helium interupted, "I need a quick bathroom break."

"Hurry up," Twilmer grumped. Helium's charcter disappeared and a standby message was floating in the air where he had once been. Helium soon returned and smiled with a blush. "Alright party, forward march!" Twilmer pointed to the path ahead. Ontaro grumbled as Twilmer climbed up Helium's arm and perched on his shoulder.

"Hey Twilmer," Helium whispered to the admin-turned Pichu sitting on his shoulder. She looked over at him with a raised eyebrow. "If you haven't logged out in eight months, then how do you...you know...use the bathroom and eat and stuff like that?"

"First of all, you have no proof that I haven't logged out in eight months other than that odd little thought that won't leave your hard head. Second, I'm well paid because of my admin status and employment at PWO Corp, so I have a butler for the rare occasions, and I do mean rare, do NOT give me that skeptical look, where I pull all nighters. He brings me food and I eat while playing. Also, I have modified the virtual reality helmet I'm wearing so that it has a camera on it and can show me my surroundings if I look around. I have a personal bathroom in my room, so I just use the camera to help locate the bathroom. The helmet is water proof so I can shower with it on, if I had to, but I don't, so don't look at me like that." Twilmer explained, refusing to look at Helium. He shrugged and din't ask her anything else as they made their way out of the mountains.

"Oh wow! The PWO programmers have really out done themselves this time," Twilmer commented as they entered the valley. It was true, the valley was graphically stunning and if it weren't for the players having controllers in their hands and virtual reality helmets on their heads, they would have felt as if they were in a real valley. The wind blew along the grass lazily. There were flowers of every kind dotting the lush green grass that carpeted the entire area. The valley was surrounded by purple mountain majesty on either side and the snowcapped mountains enhanced the natural beauty of the place. At the far end, a town could barely be made out from the rocks that were scattered about the place from rock slides. A few trees dotted the gently sloping valley that were blossoming with red flower buds.

"Look at all the different plants," Helium gasped as he looked about. Twilmer slid off of his shoulder, not wanting to be involved with plants in anyway, and climbed onto Victoria's head. Victoria allowed Twilmer to climb aboard, but looked very irritated at the situation.

Suddenly, the sky flashed purple and a ringing sound was heard. It stopped and each party member received a PWO mail. "Looks like we triggered a special event-I wonder if it's one I designed," Twilmer pondered as she opened her PWO mail. "Congratulations, you have triggered the special event Honey Run. In this event, it is your mission to get past the swarm of Beedrill and make it to their hive. There you will find a special reward. Good luck gamers. The event will start as soon as you close this email. This is an event designed by Twilmer and can only be activated when there is an herbalist and a tamer in your party."

"Beedrill?" Helium looked around warily. "Do we have to do this event?"

"Yes because it's a great event designed by the best admin this game has ever seen. If you don't do this event, I will take it as a great insult. Also I will personally raise all of your warning levels." Twilmer glared at Helium. "Are you afraid of bees?"

"No, of course not! Why would I be afraid of bugs…with stingers…and antenna…and poison…and painful…" Helium rambled.

"Whatever, let's just start this event. I forgot what I designed as the prize," Twilmer pondered as she closed her PWO mail with a sound of protest from Helium. As soon as she had closed the mail, a faint buzzing sound could be heard. "Here they come," Helium grinned from Victoria's head. Victoria made a noise and Twilmer slid off her head.

The Beedrill were upon them in a matter of seconds and the bugs didn't look too happy at being disturbed. "Run!" Helium shouted and began to run away from the bees.

"Wrong way flower child, you have to run through them!" Twilmer shouted over the deafening hum of a hundred Beedrill wings. Helium stopped and looked at the bees, whimpering slightly.

"Yah!" Emily23 cried out as she slapped at the Beedrill with the broad end of her pole. Max yawned as he made his way slowly through the Beedrill, who didn't seem to be bothered by the Slowpoke. Ontaro used his shield to charge through the Beedrill without getting stung. Victoria slashed at them and Twilmer just ran straight forward. She was small enough that none of the pokemon bothered her.

"We're almost there! It's the first tree if I remember correctly!" Twilmer shouted, she turned to make sure that all of her party members were following her and discovered that Helium was standing in one spot, cowering as the Beedrill dived at him. "No! If our whole party doesn't get there, the prize isn't as great. Stupid herbalist!" Twilmer turned and ran back to Helium.

"Just go on without me," Helium whimpered as he cowered.

"Idiot, I can't or we won't get the best prize for completing this event." Twilmer pulled on his robes, but he wouldn't budge. Twilmer grumbled under her breath as the Beedrill began to dive bomb the two. Helium and she were completely open for an attack and if their hp reached zero…Twilmer didn't want to think about it. "What do I do?" she wondered to herself, and then smacked her forehead. "Duh, I'm a pokemon. I can attack them."

Twilmer concentrated and let out a small static spark of static. The Beedrill stopped for a second and then continued forward. "Okay, I have to concentrate. Victoria makes attacking look so easy," Twilmer mused as she concentrated on the energy levels in her body. She released them as the Beedrill were about to strike and hit them all. The Beedrill fell to the ground around her, stunned. "Let's go!" she shouted at Helium. She climbed on his shoulder as he gathered up his courage and ran forward.

He met the others and they all reached the tree. A chiming sound signaled that they had passed the event. "Alright now, lets see what the prize is!" Emily23 walked over to the chest that appeared and opened it to find…

"Are you kidding me? A plushie of your character? Twilmer, what were you thinking?" Ontaro complained as he held up the prize.

"It's the best prize ever. Much better than the Twilmer button and whatever the other prize was. Who wouldn't be dying to have it?" the party all looked at Twilmer with raised eyebrows. "What?"

"I'll take it and put it in my inventory, if you don't want it," Helium suggested, holding out his hands to Ontaro. Ontaro gave him a look like he was crazy and handed him the plushie.

"Alright then, let's continue our way to town. That event took more time than I thought, so we might not be able to make it by tomorrow, but that's okay because it was worth it for the Twilmer plushie." Twilmer beamed as she admired the plushie of herself.

"With a crazed Pichu like her, we don't need a swordsman or any other attacking party member," Ontaro grumbled under his breath. Meanwhile, Victoria was congratulating Twilmer and giving her tips for her next battle.

ooo

Emily signed off and turned the computer off. Dinner was ready and she had always loved spaghetti. She ate her fill and went back to her room to practice a bit of the drill she had learned at band camp that day. As she twirled the flag, the spaghetti she had eaten weighed heavily in her stomach. She felt bloated and fat.

"I have been eating too much lately. At this rate, I'm going to be fatter than the band director," she whined. Emily set her flag down and went to the bathroom. She had only done this twice before and didn't want to make a habit of it, but she wanted her color guard uniform to fit perfectly and this was the only solution she could think of.

She kneeled in front of the toilet and stuck her finger to the back of her throat, gagging. "Honey, are you okay?" her mother asked as she heard the sounds of her daughter vomiting.

"I'm fine, just go away," Emily called, embarrassed to be found like this.

"Well, I don't want you going to band tomorrow. You sound ill and that sun will do you no good." Emily tried to protest, but her mother was firm. Emily huffed and stomped to her room, slamming the door behind her.


	7. Teamwork

"I can not believe that you're ditching the soccer game to go rendezvous in North Hampton!" Jason raised an eyebrow and shook his head at Demetrius.

"I have obligations and prior commitments and…I just really need to go," Demetrius whined.

"I bet he's going to meet that admin chick. Whatever happened to bros before hoes?" Jason kicked the soccer ball at Demetrius as hard as he could. Demetrius stopped it before it could hit him with his foot.

"I'm not going to meet Twilmer. I don't even know where she lives because she keeps her profile private. There's just something I have to do in town." Demetrius' temper began to rise.

"Whatever man, this is so not cool. Come on Ben." Jason waved Ben towards him.

"Sorry Demetrius, but I've never been in the cool crowd before. You don't mind going to North Hampton by yourself do you?" Ben looked at him sincerely.

"Well, I-" Demetrius began, but then stopped when he realized that Jason and Ben were already walking away. Demetrius kicked the soccer ball at his feet as hard as he could towards the dormitories and then began to head for the bus stop. "Misty Dew is only going to be in North Hampton for one day and I really want her to autograph my book," Demetrius sighed, taking out his copy of Misty Dew's latest novel, Starry Night Romance. "Who says romance novels are just for girls," Demetrius thought to himself and began to read the novel as he waited for the bus.

ooo

Pokemon World Online

Login 7: The slow and the annoyed

Disclaimer: I don't own the stuff that doesn't belong to me. Thanks guys for all the constructive comments. They really help. Especially the one that reminded me that Helium/Demetrius doesn't have a character flaw. A big thanks to marco2050 who has been one of the best reviewers I've had. I'm taking a lot of his advice as I advance through this fic. I asked around my school and we came up with that he likes girly romance novels. That's better then someone's suggestion that he has a tumor and is about to die or that he likes to watch scary movies by himself at night (which isn't really a flaw…). Crazy people…

Oh, and this will be the last "plotless" part. Starting next part, a key charcter will be introduced and we'll start getting into plot. These parts are basically to introduce the charcters and to get the reader used to the online world of pokemon, so enjoy!

ooo

Twilmer was lying on a rock, sleeping. She had covered herself with leaves for a nice, warm blanket. No one ever logged on this early, so she assumed that she had sometime to herself for the time being. Twilmer rolled over and scratched her behind. Victoria snoozed next to her, leaning against the rock Twilmer was curled up on.

Unbeknownst to Twilmer, Emily23 logged on and appeared, grumbling, next to her. "I can't believe my mother is keeping me from going to band camp. It's not like I'm going to make a habit of that." Twilmer's snores scared Emily23. She turned and saw that Twilmer was sound asleep. "That's odd; she's logged in this early? Maybe those rumors are true…alright Slowpoke, use a water gun." Emily23 prodded the pokemon's side with the blunt end of her taming pole. Slowpoke dosed the Pichu in water, which was a big mistake. Twilmer's cheeks sparked as she jumped up and she ended up shocking herself, Emily23, and the three pokemon.

"What the heck did you do that for? Here I am trying to sleep and you just barge in and…what are you doing on so early?" Twilmer asked Emily23.

"My mom's making me stay home from band camp for the day, so I have nothing else to do. My mom's also threatening me to get a job because this game is so expensive. How do you manage to pay for it?" Emily23 threw her hands up in frustration.

"Oh, admins don't have to pay for Pokemon World Online. It's one of the many benefits of working at PWO corp. Besides a nice, fat pay check, we get to play this game for free. Almost makes me feel sorry for n00bs like you who have to pay…until I get my pay check. Then all those thoughts leave my head. We should probably raise the price. 22.00 a month seems too low to me. Anyways, I guess we may as well get some more of this valley covered. Helium sent me a PWO mail. He's going to get some book signing, so he won't be on today. Hopefully Ontaro's character has lost all it's hp and he won't be on today."

As Twilmer had finished that statement, Ontaro logged on. "Hey guys, what brings you here? Usually whenever I log on, no one else is on."

"Much as it's nice to see you, one who argues with admins, what are you doing on this early?" Twilmer looked at him grumpily. The fact that she was not a morning person was not helping her temper.

"I'm on the Europe server, so I'm always on before you guys log in. It's also why I log out earlier then most of you guys. What's on the agenda for today?" Ontaro and his Machop walked over to Emily23 and Twilmer.

"Make our way through this valley is what Miss Pichu decided," Emily23 twirled her pole from hand to hand. Bunneary picked up a stick that was lying nearby and tried to imitate Emily23, but ended up tripping herself. Max yawned.

"For the love of god, QUIT CALLING ME MISS PICHU!" Twilmer shouted. "I haven't had my coffee yet, so no one tick me off until my butler wakes up and brings it to me." Twilmer yawned and climbed on top of Slowpoke's back. "Seems my transportation won't be logging on today, so this'll do."

Three minutes later, that wasn't looking like such a wise decision. "Can't this thing go any faster? No wonder it gets left behind all the time. Do we really have to keep it around?" Twilmer complained.

"But Miss Pichu, we haven't found his partner yet. We can't just leave him here." Emily23 pleaded.

"For the love of…whatever, I give up. Well, there's bound to be some gamer in this field who we can dump this thing off on. I bet any…err…wait a second, is a slowpoke useful to any job? Grace masters would rather log out forever than deal with something this slow. I can't see a magician or an herbalist or even a tamer needing this creature. Defenders wouldn't need it and I can't see item finders needing it either nor any other job. Slowpokes are completely useless. We're going to be stuck with this thing, aren't we?" Twilmer sighed, sliding off Max's back. "Seems like that's the story of my life lately."

"I'm sure someone would love to have Max. He's so adorable, isn't he Bunneary?" Emily23 patted the slowpoke on the head. The slowpoke simply yawned and continued it's slow pace forward.

"That thing may be adorable, but it's slow, kind of like Twilmer," a voice heralded them, embellished with sneering laughter. Twilmer turned around to see Elra grinning at her. "Twilmer, you've finally found a partner pokemon that suits you. Maybe you can actually manage to make this one evolve."

"Elra, go away. Now is not exactly the best time. Wait a minute, what are you doing on so early?" Twilmer sighed, her shoulders sagging. She could already tell that today was going to be one of those days.

"I'm off today because it's some stupid business holiday, so I thought I'd log on and see what happened this early in the morning while I'm at work. Anyways, we're off to a land that is more suited to our talents. Seems that your body finally matches you power," Elra began to walk away, but Twilmer released a spark in her direction.

"I may not be much of a grace master at the moment, but I could take your butt any day. I think I've finally got the hang of attacking as a Pichu, so bring it," Twilmer stood ready, glaring at Elra.

"No, I don't like unfair fights," Elra shook her head and began to leave.

"I see, I mean after all, I would be embarrassed as well if I had my butt beaten by a little Pichu," Twilmer turned around and smacked her butt at Elra tauntingly.

Elra stopped and glared at Twilmer. She pulled a whistle from her inventory and blew it. A sleek Vaporeon came bounding over to her and growled. "You will regret that," Elra snarled as she pulled her bubble staff from her inventory. The blue scale-like armor she wore glinted in the early sun as she ran forward towards Twilmer.

Twilmer dodged and jumped onto Victoria's head. "I'm going to have to share your agility," Twilmer whispered to Victoria. Victoria nodded and held her claws ready, eager for battle. The Sneasal jumped up and began bounding over towards Elra. Victoria was at ease dodging strikes from Elra's staff and slashed at her Vaporeon as it passed by. The Vaporeon dodged the attack and was open for a spark from Twilmer. Victoria grinned at Twilmer and Twilmer nodded. The two stood back to back, trading blow for blow. Victoria handled Elra while Twilmer worked on weakening Vaporeon.

Vaporeon used water gun and Twilmer took that opportunity to use a static spark. The electricity used the water gun as a line to travel along and shock the Vaporeon, temporarily stunning it. Elra lashed out with her pole. Twilmer had to jump off Victoria's head in order to dodge it. Elra took this opportunity to point the staff at Twilmer's chest and prepared to strike. Victoria came rushing up and knocked Elra away from Twilmer, standing protectively in front of her.

"How noble," Elra smirked before flipping around and landing behind Twilmer, pointing the pole at her throat. "Checkmate." Elra sneered. Twilmer slumped over and glared at Elra, not saying anything. "With that my level goes up once again and I am closer to entering the ranks of the top ten players while you, my dear, flounder at a lousy level 63."

Victoria started to move, but Twilmer held up her paw. "If we attack while she has us cornered, then she is allowed to reduce our hit points to zero. The rule all grace masters know." Twilmer stood up and brushed the dirt off of her fur. A purple bruise was starting to form on her right side. "Elra, you may have won, but that doesn't disuade me from thinking that you're actually a guy in real life. In fact, it heightens my suspicions."

Elra growled, clenching her fists. "I am not a guy! Whatever, come on Vaporeon, we don't need the likes of them." Elra and her Vaporeon gracefully sped away. Twilmer clutched her side, wincing in pain.

"Stupid add ons that make you actually feel the pain you take," she grumbled under her breath as she stumbled and fell back to the ground, "definately not one of our smartest inventions." Victoria kneeled and held a claw to Twilmer to help her up. Twilmer smiled and took the claw offered. As her tiny, yellow hand touched Victoria's white, extended claw, Victoria began to glow. Twilmer stood in wonder as the pokemon before her changed shape. Victoria stopped glowing and a Weavile stood where the Sneasal once had. "Victoria," Twilmer gasped.

"They finally learned to work together as a team," Ontaro said as he looked at the two in wonder. "That was incredible; two pokemon supporting each other in the midst of battle."

"You're right. You better appreciate me saying that because it probably won't happen again. Victoria and I were always seperate but equal entities. I think this is the first time we've truly worked together like that." Twilmer smiled at her partner, who nodded. "Thank you."

"Wowzerz, this is so l33t!" Emily23 jumped up and down, her Bunneary mimicing her. Max yawned.

"Okay, your l33t speak, which I told you never to do in my presence, has completely killed the moment. Come on, we still have a ways to go before we reach the town and something tells me that we're actually going to find a worthwhile party member there." Twilmer continued on, side-by-side with Victoria.


	8. Aura and Dream

Pokemon World Online

Login 8: Aura the protector

Disclaimer: If I didn't own them before, what makes you think I own them now? Anyways, it's plot time. That's right, the complex plot that was pretty much ignored for the first 7 parts is in. Though if I had immediantly started with plot, then the charcters wouldn't be as cared about as they are now, would they? Thanks to the many reviews for shaping this and a huge thanks to Moya (who this chapter is dedicated to) for being such a good friend and protecting my dreams. There is an rpg based off of this fic on the forums I frequent, and she came up with the charcter Aura for it. I fell in love with her charcter design, so I just had to beg her to use it in this fic. So Aura is Moya's and not mine. She gets all credit for the awesomeness that is Aura.

Oh, regarding the event in part 6: There are so many admins having to plan events that there are pretty much event combinations for every single party out there, so it's not so random that an event for a party with a tamer and an herbalist popped up.

ooo

"It has been awhile since I've been here," a young woman said to herself as she entered the valley town. An Empoleon waddled next to her, looking crtically around it's self at the street, which was littered with abandoned potion and elixer bottles. The Empoleon sniffed and coughed, feeling too good for the street that they were walking along. "Easy Sparia, we have a job to do, remember? I know this town is such a main way for newbies just starting out so it gets dirty easily and the PWO suits don't have enough time to clean it up, but we won't be here long. We were newbies once, do you remember?" Empoleon shook it's head yes, though grudgingly.

"It's not everyday that you hear of an administrator turned Pichu. That glitch sounds interesting as well and it's been a long time since we've had anything fairly interesting to do in this game." The girl stretched, causing the short, green tube top with golden flowers embroidering the edges to stretch over her well endowed body. She adjusted her blue swirled vest and adjusted the rare goggles she had won in an event that she wore upon her head. "It shouldn't be hard to find a talking Pichu in a city like this, just follow the girly shreiks and shouts of surprise," the woman mused to herself, resting her hands on her hips, twin katanas clinking at her side as they swayed with her steps. Her black, leather pants complimented her figure nicely and the silver belt buckle on her blue belt glinted in what little sunlight shone through the many, cluttered buildings of the town.

"Gandrum valley sure isn't what it used to be," the woman mused to Sparia, who was still in disgust over the filth and grime of the town streets. THe woman stood still as she heard girly shrieks in the distance. "Sounds like our target has entered the town. Let's go, Sparia!" The woman called to her partner, who nodded. The two ran towards the source of the shreiks.

ooo

"Whay does this always happen to me?" Twilmer sighed as a group of girls were crowding around the talking Pichu that had just arrived in town. "I know you n00bs have never seen an admin of my greatness before, but show some dignity." The girls continued to crowd around, and some even tried to pick Twilmer up. "Okay, that's it, I'm ticked." Twilmer's cheeks began to spark. Twilmer released a static attack and the group of girls ran away, shrieking in fear. "That'll show them," Twilmer grinned evily as she brushed her hands together.

"Well, that took care of them. So what exactly are we supposed to do now that we've made it to town?" Ontaro asked as he looked around the street they were standing on. "For this valley being so beautifully programmed, this city is a dump."

"Well, this valley is a newbie area and newbies don't believe in emptying out thier inventories in virtual dumps, but everywhere else. PWO corp got tired of sending people to clean this place when there was more work to be done, so we eventually stopped trying. Anyways, the point in coming here was to find a new party member that could actually attack. Right now, we're a party of sitting-golducks. Any n00b could attack us and we'd be done for, well maybe I wouldn't, but you guys definately would be."

"I think we should split up," Ontaro suggested. His Machop looked up at him with a curious look on it's face.

"You go right on ahead. In fact, why don't you stay split from us." Twilmer crossed her arms across her chest and wore a cross expression.

"Sounds good to me," Ontaro said, his voice dangerous. He and his Machop turned down an alley and were soon out of sight.

"Miss Pichu, that wasn't nice. I didn't care for that guy either, but that was a little cold." Emily23 shifted her taming pole nervously in her hands. Her Bunneary mimicing her with a stick that she had taken to carrying around. Max yawned.

"He deserved it. That kid had no respect, talking to an admin like I was some common newcomer. Besides, he'll come to his senses soon enough and join us once again. Now let us see what we can see in this town." Twilmer led the way, or rather told Helium where to go as she perched on his shoulder. Gloom toddled along behind him, sniffing at differant weeds that had began to grow between the cracks on the cobblestone road. Victoria made sure that she stayed near Twilmer in case she needed to be protected. Ever since Victoria had evolved yesterday, the relationship between the grace master and the Weavile had grown.

"Oh my gosh!" Helium suddenly shouted and ran to a poster that was pasted to the window of one of the buildings.

"You're starting to sound like Emily23," Twilmer looked over at him disapprovingly.

"I didn't know that Misty Dew had a PWO acocunt, look at this poster!" Helium exclaimed. Twilmer eyed the poster, which was an advertisement for a Misty Dew event that was to be held the next day.

"Oh yeah, she's one of our sponsers. She's going on some book signing tour this summer, so we're holding an event each day in a differant town to help advertise. Ugh, I can't stand those gusy romance novels that she writes. Romance is such a waste of good gaming time," Twilmer sniffed.

"You just haven't given them enough chance. I'm sure you'd like them if you..." Helium stopped, blushing, because Twilmer was giving him a funny look.

"Don't tell me you actually read those stupid things. Good lord, I thought you were pathetic before, but this takes the cake." Twilmer literally fell of Helium's shoulder because she was laughing so hard. Victoria caught her because she had such fast reflexes. Twilmer regained her composure and climbed back up Helium's shoulder. "Okay, I'm good. Man, I needed that laugh," Twilmer sighed. The bruise on her side began to hurt as the laughter had disturbed it.

"Miss Pichu, be nice to Helium. I read those kind of books too, and they are quite good. Sometimes they make you lol and other times you just feel the 3," Emily23 sighed as a misty look came over her eyes as if she were imagining herself as the main charcter of one of those novels. Bunneary had the same dreamy look in her eyes as she clasped her paws in front of her face. Max yawned.

"Woman, if you speak l33t to me one more time, I swear I'll...oh forget it, it's just not worth it anymore," Twilmer sighed, clutching at the bruise at her side.

"I can whip up a balm that'll help ease the pain of that bruise, if you want me to. I have the ingrediants with me right now." Helium suggested.

"Could you? This bruise is killing me. If it works, I'll let you two stay for this Misty Dew event." Twilmer slid off of Helium's shoulder and sat down on the curb of the sidewalk. Emily23 spun her pole as she hummed to herself (Bunneary trying to follow along) as Helium mixed together differant types of herbs. Max yawned and Victoria began scratching differant shapes into the sidewalk with her claws.

ooo

"Darn it, I forgot about those Misty Dew events. There are shreiking girls all over the place because of some romance novel," the goggled woman swallowed against a lump that had just formed in her throat. The thoughts of one of those romance novels brought back overwhelming memories. The woman stopped walking and hung her head down. She had learned from experiance that it was best to let the memories wash over you instead of keeping them back. Sparia stood by her side, holding her hand in her wing. Once the memories were down flowing, the woman wiped a tear from her eye and continued forward.

"Come on, one of these groups of girls is bound to be near our target." The woman jumped as she received a PWO mail. "Hey Aura," she read, "I heard you were in the vallet town looking for the admin, Twilmer. It seems that she is the talk of PWO corp. None of the suits can figure out what happened and the creator of the game and his group of elite seven aren't releasing any information concerning what they know or don't know. In other words, more of the same. u.u; Anyways, it seems the glitch wasn't in the programming at all from the information we were able to comb from the few information trickles that have occured. The entire Firewall mountain area has been sealed off, so we can't get anywhere near it to discover what's going on. The top ten is in a real bind here. We're glad you agreed to join the admin since none of us ten can at the moment. If you succed, maybe we can allow you to join and make ourselves the top eleven. lol jk I know you're not up to this kind of thing. It is really annoying, especially with the suits around. Anyways, just an update to let you know what's going on. Ciao bella, Drix."

Aura smiled as she closed the PWO mail. "Seems like there's disorganization within the organization. This just keeps getting better and better." Aura began her search once again, not even bothering heading towards the shouts of the gamers anymore.

ooo

"Ah, that feels a lot better. Thanks Helium, you've gained some of the respect back that you lost by reading girly novels," Twilmer thanked Helium. He smiled at her and nodded, ignoring the rude comments she had made and focusing on her compliment. "Well, there's no sense in rushing through this town if we're going to be here for more than a day."

"Oh good, because I heard that a cyute new Bunneary bandana was just put in stock in stores via the forums. Can I go see if they're here, Miss Pichu?" EMily23 folded her hands in front of her in a begging style.

"I like it when people beg me to do something," Twilmer commented idlely. "Yes, you can go buy your fangirl merchandise." Emily23 squeeled and began to run off in the direction of the market square. "Guess it's just you and me on the hunt for a new party member. I had completely forgotten about that event, so all self-respecting gamers have probably high-tailed it out of town by now."

"Well, there are bound to be a few good swordsman who are here, I'm sure." Helium tried to bring Twilmer's spirits up.

"That may be so, but they're probably all in love with those romance novels and probably are more annoying than Em. Whatever. Let's just rest here for awhile until she comes back." Twilmer sat down on the curb and began to count every time she heard a fangirl scream. "So what's this romance novel about?" Twilmer asked.

"Well, this girl named Misty likes this boy named Ash, but Ash is indifferant to the situation. She decides to confess her love to him on the night of the fireworks show only to find some girl named May kissing him. Misty's heart is broken and she goes to kill herself, only when she jumps off the cliff, she lives. She is admitted to the hospital and, faced with the reality that Misty may die, Ash realizes that it's Misty he loves and not May. When Misty is released from the hospital, Ash confeses his love to her, but it seems the accident has caused Misty to have temporary amnesia. Ash works to get Misty's memory back and then they grow closer because of this, only May becomes jealous. May corners Misty on the roof of Misty's apartment building and the two fight. May manages to push Misty off the roof and this time she dies. When Ash hears of this, he commits suicide by drowning himself in the ocean. The two meet each other in heaven and are finally able to be together." Helium explained with a sigh.

"Dear lord if that's not the biggest load of bull I've ever heard. That could never happen in real life. It sounds like a bad fanfic. I knew there was a reason that I didn't read those books," Twilmer shook her head.

"What's the last book you read?" Helium asked as he came and sat next to Twilmer.

"The Sound and The Fury by William Faulkner. It's a really great book. There's a mentally challenged person, a suicidal person, a whore, and an alcohalic, plus a man who's just really ticked off at everything. Now THAT my friend is a classic," Twilmer smiled as she remembered the book. Helium frowned at this, not knowing how anyone could take pleasure in a Faulkner novel.

ooo

"If PWO was stupid enough to hire an admin like her, then I should just sell this game at the next yardsale. Or I could sell it on ebay for a ridiculously high price," Ontaro pondered as he scratched his chin, which was covered in stubble because he felt this made his charcter more manly. Machop looked up at him with a worried expression on it's face.

"You shouldn't talk badly of PWO or it's corporation in a place with so many ears to hear you," a woman that seemed to be born of the shadows she had just stepped out of interjected, "because once PWO corp has labeled you a threat to them, then it's game over on this MMORPG and in real life." The woman was wearing a skirt with a slit up the side that revealed a long, slender leg. Her top left her midriff exposed. She wore long, black, lace gloves that met the sleeveless shirt at her shoulder.

"Who are you?" Ontaro demanded. He held a shield that seemed to be made of rocks at the ready and glared at the woman, who simply smiled. Ontaro's heart skipped a beat at that smile. "This woman is beautiful," Ontaro thought as he looked at her red lips, green eyes, and long, flowing, black hair. Ontaro began to sweat, which didn't seem to please his Machop any. She shot the woman an angry look.

"I am known as Dream on here because I am a dream. As a dream, I have the power to warp what you know and make the slightest impossibilities possible. I can do anything you want me to in this reality, but only if you make my dreams come true first," her words were like honey that dripped softly down the sides of her mouth. Ontaro had the strongest desire to taste that honey, but knew it was a forbidden food.

"I'm listening," Ontaro cocked his head at the woman.

"I need you to tell me all you know about the admin," Dream smiled in a way that made her seem dangerous. Machop stood protectively in front of her master, but he told her to move aside.

"Alright," Ontaro began.

ooo

"That n00b has been gone for over an hour," Twilmer complained, throwing her pudgy, yellow, Pichu arms up into the air in frustration. "That's it, I'm going to the square to see what she's up to. She probably got lost again." Twilmer stood up and Victoria walked over beside her. Helium made to get up, but Twilmer held up her hand to stop him. "You stay here in case she happens to find her way back."

"Will you be okay out there by yourself?" Helium asked, concern filling his voice.

"Of course, I know this town like the back of my hand was before it turned pudgy and yellow. Plus I have Victoria here to protect me. Don't worry that pretty littly head of yours," Twilmer walked away with Victoria by her side. The two made thier way down a few alleys, which Twilmer used as short cuts. By the time they reached the market square, Twilmer was gasping for breath. "How do Pichus manage to live with such short legs?" Twilmer complained. Victoria snickered slightly at the pooped admin. Twilmer let it go as she caught her breath and began to look for a sign of the Bunneary suit-clad girl.

"You think it wouldn't be hard to find a freak in a bunny suit in a town full of fan girls," Twilmer grumbled to herself as she walked. Suddenly a foot came a little closer to Twilmer than she would have liked. "How dare you almost step on an admin. That's it, you're warning level is so going to heck in a hand basket!" Twilmer shouted up at the man.

The man, who was rather large, glared down at her. "Obviously, little talking Pichu, you don't know who you're talking to. I happen to be a level 40 swordsman, so I'd keep your trap shut."

"It's also obvious that you don't know who you're talking to. I am a level 63 grace master...or I was. Anyways, I am Twilmer and I am one of the head admins of PWO Corp. As such, I demand a certain amount of respect from gamers who aren't as high up as me, understand?" Twilmer's voice was dangerous and Victoria was holding her claws up, growling.

Everyone in the market square had grown silent and gathered around the two gamers. The man drew his sword and held it out towards the Pichu. "Admin or not, no one speaks to me like that." The man began to run forward and before either Twilmer or Victoria could move, two katanas countered the sword. Twilmer looked up and saw a woman wearing goggles with short hair and fair skin standing protectively over her.

"Now that was uncalled for. You know the rules about attacking pokemon unprovoked," the woman used her two katanas to throw the sword away, causing the man to fall backwards. When he stood up, his face was as read as the woman's goggles.

"Who are you?" the man demanded, holding his sword ready.

"I am aura," the woman said. At the mention of her name, several gasps went through the crowd. The swordman paled and stepped back from the woman. Even Twilmer gasped slightly, having heard of Aura.

"You're the woman who willingly turned away being part of the top ten gamers." the man began to back up.

Aura took a step forward and glared at the man, "Boo!" she shouted. The man ran away, dropping his sword as he went. "Heh, all talk and no action. Figures," Aura smirked as she turned to the admin. "It seems I've found you."

ooo

MWAHAHAHAHA cliffhanger. Don't you just hate me?


	9. Dare to Dream

Pokemon World Online

Login 9: Dare to Dream

Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon or Aura, who is owned by Moya. Well, I left you guys on a cliffhanger last time MWAHAHAHA. Oh, and I hope you like how the plot is starting to come together now. It seems PWO is starting to infect my dreams as the past two nights I have dreamt of PWO, which is quite weird. Without further ado, here we go.

ooo

"Why were you looking for me?" Twilmer asked in amazement as she looked up with wide-eyed wonderment at the swordswoman who stood over her. Aura was the only gamer to willingly turn down being in the top ten gamers. The top ten were the top level gamers, 6 of which were level 100. Aura had left the top ten and regulated her level so that she wouldn't enter their ranks again. Twilmer was unsure as to why, but she didn't really care either. All she knew was that a high level swordswoman was standing over her and her party was short an attacking member.

"I was hoping to join your party," Aura said as she rested the blade of one of her katanas on her shoulder. Twilmer was taken by the sight of her.

"I hope I don't offend you by asking, but why?" Twilmer asked, finding no reason why such a powerful gamer would want to join her little rag-tag group of low level misfits.

"I'll keep my reasons to myself, but I wish to help you discover how to fix this glitch, plus I haven't had anything interesting to do in quite some time," Aura smirked. Sparia had walked over to Aura and was looking at Victoria as if the Weavile's power could never compare to hers. Victoria growled and made a very rude gesture with her middle claw.

"Let's go to where the rest of our party is before we have a situation on our hands...paws...wings...claws...whatever we have." Twilmer jumped as she was sent a PWO mail. "Hmm, seems Emily23 has returned to our meeting place with...new duds?" Twilmer closed the mail and blenched at the idea of Emily23's new outfit. The two made thier way to the alley where Helium was examining differant weeds and Emily23 was spinning her pole; Bunneary failing to spin her stick the way Emily23 spun her pole. Max yawned.

"Dear lord, Em! You look like the playboy bunny...playboy bunneary?" Twilmer covered her eyes.

"What, this? I like this," Emily23 said, indicating her new outfit. She was wearing cream colored boots, a cream colored skort with a Bunneary tail attached to the back, a tight-fitting brown tanktop, brown gloves that came to her mid arm, and Bunneary ears on her head. "Helium likes it too, don't you?"

"I really don't want to state my opinion at this moment in time," Helium said as he stole cautious glances from both girls, both of which were giving him death glares.

"I can see that this group is really," Aura took in Emily23's new atire, the yawning slowpoke, the pink robed man playing with weeds, the gloom who was sniffing a crack on the sidewalk, the Weavile who was currently having a heated arguement with her Sparia, and the Pichu-turned admin slapping her forehead, "colorful, I suppose is the right word." Aura sounded very amused at the situation.

"Now you see what I've been dealing with," Twilmer grumped, crossing her arms across her tiny chest. "There's another freak on our party, but he's a disobediant prick and left us. He'll come crying back to our party though, mark my words."

"Consider them marked," Aura said, holding back a laugh. She was usually very serious, but it was hard to deny a small giggle from escaping her lips at the ridiculous party the admin had gotten herself. "Perhaps I will enjoy being on a party for once." Aura spoke truthfully.

"Yay, a new member!" Emily23 began to twirl around in place.

"Twilmer, you finally got the swords person party member you wanted," Helium beamed at Twilmer affectionately. A small blush appeared across the pink, Pichu cheeks which went unnoticed by all (even Twilmer) except Helium. Max yawned.

ooo

"As long as you continue to deliver what I request to me, your dreams shall come true," Dream smiled, licking her red lips seductively. Ontaro walked towards her and was about to see if his dreams could come true at that moment, but she placed a finger to his lips. "You must first make my dreams come true, then I'll come true." Her laugh was a symphony to his ears. She stepped back and melted into the shadows, completely disappearing.

"Teleportation," Ontaro mumbled, placing a finger to his own lips where her finger had been.

Ontaro walked out of the alley way and used his leather-gloved hand to shield his eyes from the sun above him. It was already beginning it's decent from the sky, but it was bright none-the-less. "The time zones are so different here then they are in my hometown," he thought to himself as his Machop trotted next to him. "I really don't want to go back to that party, but it looks like I have no choice," he sighed.

Machop raised an eyebrow as if saying that he had a choice and didn't have to follow Dream's orders, but she was ignored, as always. She was quite used to being ignored by now and sometimes she had no idea why she still stuck by him, but then her partner would smile or pat her head and she'd remember why. She felt great feelings towards him. As impossible as it seemed, the bit of artificial intelligence could have feelings, though of what she was not sure. She had heard her whole life that she was just a bit of data, but if she was, then how come she had these feelings?

Machop shook her head as she trotted next to her partner. For now, she wouldn't even think of such things.

ooo

"Well look what the Delcatty dragged in," Twilmer sneered as Ontaro walked over to the group. They had been idly chatting and planning where they should head after the Misty Dew event when he walked in. "How did you find us?"

"The party locating feature on my map screen. Listen, this party needs a good defender and…who is she?" Ontaro asked, pointing at Aura.

"You really are a n00b. I hereby declare you n00bier than Miss n00b over there in the playboy outfit. This is Aura, one of the best swords woman in the entire game, and she has agreed to join our party. Why should I even accept you back?" Twilmer crossed her arms and looked at him out of the corner of her eye as if she were too good to be seen talking to him.

"Because," Ontaro gritted his teeth, thinking of Dream to give him the ability to lower his pride to ask to rejoin the group, "…because I wish to be in the servitude of such a great admin." Ontaro flourished his statement with a bow. He could see that the admin was flattered, and he smirked to himself. His Machop gave him a disapproving glance.

"Okay then, but consider yourself lucky." Twilmer looked up at him and then walked over to sit beside Helium. Aura looked at him with a critical eye. She could not explain the reasoning, but she did not like the defender for reasons she was not sure of.

"Well, I gtg," Emily23 said as she stopped twirling her pole. "My mom's about to come home from work and she probably wouldn't like that I was on here while I was supposed to be resting. Ttyl!" Emily23 and Bunneary waved as she logged out.

"How many times do I have to tell her not to speak to me in abbreviations, chat speak, or l33t?" Twilmer grumbled under her breath.

"I should sign out as well. I have a deadline to meet," Aura commented as she waved good bye to everyone and her character faded from view.

"Meet a deadline for what?" Twilmer wondered. "Ontaro, log out." She commanded. "I can't stand it being just you here."

"What about Helium?" he asked, pointing to the pink-robed man who was currently using his pestle to grind the weed he had found.

"What about him?" Twilmer asked, glaring at Ontaro. Ontaro's character faded from view with a scowl that could've scared a Houndoom. "Are you going to log out?" Twilmer asked Helium.

"Nah, I want to see what properties this weed has before I do." Helium continued to grind the weed, his Gloom sniffing at the spicy aroma coming from the crushed leaves. "This spicy smell hints that it could be used for healing, but the color suggests that it could be used to poison. You can't have a plant that poisons and heals, so I have to examine it." Helium sighed and set the plant aside. "Though I need a break no because the smell is starting to get to me. Unlike Gloom, I can't stand strong smells for long periods of time." Just as Helium had said that, he saw Gloom standing over his pestle, inhaling the aroma.

"It seems weird to me that you love flowers and plants but are afraid of bees. That's like a sailor being afraid of water." Twilmer commented as she fiddled with a pebble on the cobblestone road.

"When I was little my parents owned a flower shop, before they had to sell it when my sister was born, and I used to love watching the bees fly around from flower to flower. Sometimes I would pretend I was a bee. One day I thought I had gotten so good at being a bee that I could join the hive, so I put on my best bee outfit and went to the hive. I accidentally ripped the hive trying to get in it and I was attacked. I was in the hospital for a few days because of that. After that, I was scared of bees," Helium explained, smoothing out some wrinkles on his sakura-pink robe.

"That's special," Twilmer raised an eyebrow at the herbalist, "though I'm sort of surprised that you're not afraid of flowers." Twilmer made designs on the layer of dirt on the sidewalk with her finger. She felt suddenly nervous and wasn't sure why, so she ignored the feeling.

"I was for a bit, but I loved flowers too much to be scared of them. Eventually I just learned to run whenever I heard that familiar buzzing sound." Helium and Twilmer shared a laugh. The laughter died out and a silence fell between them. The silence wasn't uncomfortable, but it made Twilmer a little edgy.

"So, you like Misty Dew novels?" Twilmer began conversationally and mentally kicked herself for bringing up those stupid novels. "Why am I doing this?" Twilmer wondered to herself.

"Yeah, I do. My mom used to read them a lot and I always wondered what they were about, so one day I picked one up and I found the story appealing and have been a fan ever since. I'm a romantic, so I suppose that's why I like them so much. I admit that they're kind of cheesy, but I like them. You should read 'Faulkner's Love.' I think you'd enjoy that one as it makes allusions to the charcter Caddie in "The Sound and The Fury." You should try it."

"While it's against my better judgement to read one of those idiotic books, the fact that one makes allusions to my favorite book intrigues me. I'll make a deal with you. If you read a Faulkner book, then I'll read that Misty Dew book." Twilmer looked up at him, figuring that he wouldn't want to read Faulkner.

"Sounds good," Helium smiled, causing Twilmer to slump slightly, "which book do you reccomend?"

"Well, a good starting book would be 'As I Lay Dying," so start with that." Twilmer suggested. She was actually feeling eager for him to read one of her favorite authors, which surprised her. She shrugged it off and glared at Helium. "To make sure that you will read this book, let's shake on it." Twilmer held out her paw, then dropped. "Wait a second, that's stupid. We can't shake hands on a MMORPG," Twilmer sighed.

"Well, if we both shake hands online and really mean it, it'll sort of be like we shook hands in real life, in a way." Helium mused, then held out his hand.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," Twilmer muttered and shook Helium's hand. "That didn't feel like anything."

"Maybe not physically," Helium said to himself, but just loud enough for twilmer's sensitive Pichu ears to hear. "Well, I better go and meet up with Jason and Ben before they complain about me spending too much time on here and crushing on...well, bye!" Helium shouted and logged off quickly; he and his Gloom disappearing from view.

"That was really odd," Twilmer commented, still looking at the spot where Helium had disappeared. She smiled at that spot and shook her head, "What a dweeb."

ooo

"Miss Twila, here's your dinner," Twila's butler, Jeffrey, said as he brought in a plate of a fried chicken leg, macaroni, and green beans. He set the tray on the table next to Twila's cluttered desk top and stepped back.

"Thanks, Jeff. Hey, could you pick me up a new book?" Twila asked the butler.

"Yes, madam, which would it be? I hear they have the new annotated edition of Absalam, Absalam out now." Jeffrey knew Twila's book tastes.

"Okay, pick that one up for me as well," Twila said as she checked through her PWO mail in the game, having removed the speaker to talk to her butler, "but I want you to pick me up a book called 'Faulkner's Love' by Misty Dew. It sounds intriguing so I wish to try a new sort of novel."

"Miss, are you feeling well? I thought you absolutely hated Misty Dew and any other romance novelist!" Jeffrey exclaimed in surprise.

"Usually yes, but I'm a girl of my word. I promised Helium, so I have to do it," she sighed.

"Right away, madam." Jeffrey bowed as he left the room. Twila picked up a chicken leg and began to gnaw at it with little, measured bites. Since she wasn't nearly as active as she had been eight months ago, she was watching what she ate so she wouldn't gain a lot of weight. She did have a treadmill she would run on sometimes, but that's only when the game wasn't occupying her. Twila pushed her plate aside and replaced the microphone back on her head. "Sorry, Victoria, I was eating." Twila said through the microphone to her PWO partner.


	10. Mistyeyed Pichu

"I didn't know that you were into Faulkner," Ben commented as he walked over to his suitcase, which was lying on the floor. "Anyways, are you going home for the Fourth of July?"

"No. My family never really celebrated this holiday, except with a cook out, so I thought I'd just stay here and read some Faulkner." Demetrius flipped a page in his book.

"Jason isn't going home either, but that's because he finally found himself a girl following and would rather suck face with them then go home and spend time with his family," Ben said bitterly as he folded his clothes and placed them in the suitcase. He was more bitter at the fact that he didn't have a girl following then Jason not going home for the holidays.

"Yeah," Demetrius frowned, turning another page in his book. He was lying on his bed with his feet hanging off the end. "I wish he wouldn't do that."

"Do what?" Ben asked, tossing some socks into his suitcase.

"Lead all those girls on just for, you know. I don't agree with that." Demetrius set his book aside and sat up.

"I don't really agree with it either, but what can I do? I'm lucky you two even talk to me," Ben laughed.

"I don't know why we're considered so 'popular' or whatever. I suppose it's because we're on the soccer team," Demetrius looked out their window.

"Are you saying you don't like being popular?" Ben asked, surprised.

"No, I mean it's nice," Demetrius admitted, "but I'm old fashioned in the way that I believe in abstinence until marriage." Ben didn't say anything as he gathered up the items under his bed. "Don't you?"

"Well, I did, but then…" Ben's words trailed off as he deposited the items into his suitcase and struggled to close it. He sat on it and eventually got it to zip completely. "I mean, you're nineteen and about to turn twenty, same as me. You can't say that you've never…"

Demetrius looked over at Ben. "I can't believe this. I always thought that you, of all people, would be-"

"Lighten up, Demetrius! You're just like this because you can't get any! I made a mistake, but it's that mistake that keeps me in the popular crowd with you and Jason. I'm not like you two, I was never very popular and I finally did something that makes me popular. Jason likes the idea, so why can't you?" Ben interrupted, fuming and shaking with anger.

"Oh yeah, like Jason's the best guy in the world! Heaven forbid that I have morals." Demetrius found his temper rising, and as he was always calm and very rarely angry, this was slightly frightening to Ben.

"I forgot, you like online girls, don't you? It's because you could never get one in real life." Ben had crossed the line and he knew it.

"Online or not, it doesn't matter, my morals are the same. If this makes me a lesser person in your eyes, then I really don't wish to…" Demetrius stopped. He sat down on his bed and picked up his book. He was finished with this conversation. He didn't like to get angry or argue, and he had almost told Ben something that he knew he would later forget.

"Hey, Demetrius," Ben called, frowning, "look, I'm sorry." Demetrius didn't say anything, only sighed. "Well, I guess I'll see you later." Ben picked up his suitcase and walked across the room. He opened the door and exited the room, closing the door behind him. Demetrius sighed and set his book down again.

He walked over to his laptop and placed the virtual reality helmet over his head, logging on to Pokemon World Online.

ooo

Pokemon World Online

Login 10: Misty-eyed Pichu

Disclaimer: I own my original charcters, but not pokemon or Satoshi Tajiri or William Faulkner and any of his related novels. I do own the online universe, though. Here's part 10. I know part 9 was rather short and maybe a bit of a let down after the action packed eighth part, but I hope to make it up with this part about the Misty Dew competition. So, enjoy and don't forget to review.

Speaking of which, this chapter is dedicated to marco2050 as he is away with the army and will be unable to review. His reviews always helped with spelling, mechanics, and plot that seemed to be lacking, so this chapter is dedicated to you, my best critic. Good luck and safe passage.

ooo

Helium, Aura, Twilmer, Ontaro, Emily23, Sparia, Max, Victoria, Machop, Bunneary, and Gloom were gathered in the center square (also known as the market square) waiting for the Misty Dew event to start. Helium was quiter then Twilmer could ever remember and EMily23 also seemed to be preoccupied with her own thoughts. "Why am I in this hustle and bustle of trampling feet if I don't even plan on participating in this event?" Twilmer grumped as she crossed her paws across her chest.

"That's a very good point. I can't stand crowds," Aura said in distaste as she looked around at all of the n00bs and fangirls that surrounded her. "Let's get out of here and some place not completely surrounded by girls who wish thier own dismal loves could be full of romance." Twilmer nodded and she and Aura made thier way through the crowd and into a side street. All the shops had been closed for the day, so there wasn't much to do. Aura spotted a bench and the two plopped down on it.

Twilmer looked up in distaste as Ontaro came into view. "Go away," Twilmer demanded. Aura glared at him, making Ontaro feel very uneasy.

"I don't care for the Misty Dew event either, so I thought I'd come and sit with you guys." The two females glared at him, so he sat on the curb of the sidewalk next to Twilmer. His Machop sat next to him so he wouldn't be alone. Ontaro had to get some information out of the admin and he figured the best way was to spend the day with her while she avoided the event. Unfortunately, his hopes sank as it seemed both charcters became idle soon. "Are you guys there?" he asked.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm just starting to read this book Helium reccomended to me yesterday. It's called 'Faulkner's Love' and it's not half bad so far," Twilmer said casually. Ontaro gave her a weird look, pondering why she didn't just log out to read.

"Isn't that a Misty Dew novel? I thought you hated those," Aura raised an eyebrow at the admin.

"Yes, I do hate romance novels, but Helium asked me to read this, so I said I would. He's reading 'As I Lay Dying' for me, so I figure things even out," Twilmer explained.

"Whatever you say," Aura said, leaning back on the bench and yawning widely. She stretched her arms and placed them behind her head. "It seems that you and that Helium kid are rather chummy. Anything going on there that I should know about?" Aura asked, closing one eye to get a better look at the Pichu-turned admin.

"No, not that I'm aware of. He just happens to be the first member of my party, so I suppose I'm closer to him than the rest of our party. You and him are pretty much the only sane members on this party, aside from me, of course." Twilmer was unaware of the blush creeping onto her Pichu cheeks. Aura just shook her head and looked up at the blue sky above them. The area they were in didn't experiance shifts in weather conditions like higher level areas. After they left this town tomarrow, they would be heading to higher level areas and the defender, herbalist, and tamer would be at a disadvantige.

Aura sighed, closing her eyes, which opened soon afterwards as she heard the clink of Ontaro's shield. "I just remembered that I was supposed to send King Phillip III a pm at the next town we arrived in." Ontaro excused himself, walking on down a side alley.

"Good ridence," Twilmer muttered.

ooo

Ontaro leaned against the wall of an alleyway out of earshot of Twilmer's sensitive, Pichu ears. His Machop looked up at him and shook her head. She did not approve of what she knew he was about to do. As Ontaro opened up his PWO mail menu, Dream stepped out of the shadows to his right. "You have information for me?" she asked, her voice drifted to him in a scintillating manner. Her accent was heavy, though Ontaro could not quite pinpoint it's origin.

"Yes, and I think you'll find it quite useful," Ontaro said, his words rushed as his face flushed and his heart rate increased.

"I shall be the judge of that," Dream walked over to him, her heeled boots making no sound on the cobblestone road, which was unusual but was a fact that went unnoticed by Ontaro, "what is the news?"

"Well, it seems that, and I've noticed this myself as well, but in a conversation that the admin had with the new member of our party that Twilmer seems to be developing feelings for the herbalist of our party, Helium." Ontaro's thoughts came out faster than his words could follow.

"That is an interesting bit of information. I had suspected something, but was uncertain as to whether or not it was true. Helium is un interesting charcter himself. Though he is relatively low in level, he is able to make some combinations that should be way beyond his skill level. It seems his partner, Gloom, is to be blamed for this. He wears a pink robe because he couldn't afford anything else with his poke at the time and doesn't change it now because he's become quite attached to it. He goes to Hampton University in Hampton, Maryland, USA. There he is studying chemistry and botany and is on the soccer team. He is room mates with a boy named Ben and he still has a Twilmer plushie in his inventory. I had wondered why he was keeping it."

"How do you know all that?" Ontaro asked Dream with wide-eyed wonder.

"I told you that I could make dreams come true, as well as my own. It's simple. Once I have access to your profile I can pretty much found out anything about a gamer that I want to; in game or in real life. A profile set to private, though, is a nightmare." Dream looked at Ontaro and considered him for a moment before she smiled. "It is now time for your dream to come true for delivering this important bit of information to me." Dream approached Ontaro, coming dangerously close to him. Ontaro got goosebumps and ignored the disapproving and jealous glare from his Machop. Ontaro leaned forward, but Dream put a finger to his lips once again.

"You have not done enough for me yet to have that dream come true. My dreams must come true first for that to happen." Dream looked at him a second with a thoughtful expression on her face. "It seems that you're party is about to be heading towards tough terratory full of higher level charcters than your group is used to." Dream snapped her fingers. "I figure level 41 will be a nice dream to come true. Au revoir." Dream stepped back into the shadows and was gone.

Ontaro checked his status screen and gasped, "I really am at level 41!" Machop was happy for her partner, but she frowned because her level had remained unchanged. For sucess in PWO, the pokemon and partner usually leveled up together. Machop sighed. She would figure a way to keep up with Ontaro without worrying the defender, not that he would anyways.

ooo

"My eyes! They Bleed!" Twilmer shouted. Aura looked over at her and raised an eyebrow. "This book is completely ridiculous! I can't believe I let Helium talk me into this," Twilmer sighed.

"I can. You do crazy things for those whom you care deeply for. I'm not implying that you like him or anything of that manner, but it's not hard to see that you've bonded with the herbalist."

"Aren't you miss know-it-all, and considering that you've been a member of this game longer than I have and the fact that you're at a higher level than me, I suppose that's right. What makes you so all-knowing?" Twilmer asked, placing her paws on her hips.

"Well, it's something I don't wish to share with you right now, no offense." Aura looked up at the admin.

Twilmer nodded, "I actually understand where you're coming from. It's why I have my profile set to private." Twilmer jumped off the bench and looked around. "You know, Ontaro has been gone a very long time. Do you think he's idle? Not that I care, but I'm interested to see what his away message says," the admin giggled mischevously.

"Just because you have the ability to edit people's away messages if they contain inappropriate content," Aura glared at Twilmer, who held up a peace sign with her paw. "Let me check his profile...no, his away message isn't up so-HOLY -" PWO's built in censor caught the language that Aura had used and bleeped it out.

"Language, please. What's up?" Twilmer asked, hopping back up on the bench.

"I checked everyone's profile yesterday while I was looking for your party in this city. Ontaro's level was in the 20s then, and now it's 41! I have never heard of a player's level gaining such a boost in such a short period of time!" Aura gasped.

"That's impossible! Even if he had stayed online all last night playing, which I know for a fact he didn't as I was on all last night, he couldn't have raised nearly 20 levels in that short amount of time."

"I smell a hacker," Aura growled, placing her left hand on the hilt of one of her katanas. "Stay here. I'm going to investigate. Come Sparia." Aura and Sparia walked briskly to the spot where Ontaro had departed them and continued down the back alleys. Twilmer grumbled at being ordered around by Aura, but obeyed out of respect for her.

"I wonder if he really was sending King Phillip III a PWO mail," Twilmer pondered before a smirk crossed her face. "Only one way to find out." She opened up her PWO mail menu and started to write a PWO mail to the ESMS leader.

ooo

Helium was walking along at a slow pace, having used up a lot of energy searching the city. The event's goal was to search for five items from the Misty Dew novels that were hidden through out the city and be the first to return back with all of them. Helium had found three and it didn't look like the other two were going to appear. "I went to the cafe, like the scene from 'My Coffee's Sugar' and got the mug. I found the coin randomly on the sidewalk, like in 'Penny for Your Thoughts'. I even found the pack of gum from 'Chewy Love Stories: a collection of sugary sweet tales'. I've checked all other scenarios possible and nothing." Helium sighed quietly as he sat on a bench; Gloom hopping up next to him.

He allowed his thoughts to stray, in hopes that they would find a scene he had not yet thought about, however his thoughts kept straying to the fight he had with Ben and, oddly enough, Twilmer. His current thoughts were of reinacting the scene from 'My Coffee's Sugar' with Twilmer, but he shook his head with a blush when they strayed to the kissing scene. He sighed, standing up and continuing down the cobblestone road. "One good thing," Helium commented to his Gloom, "Twilmer has the same morals involving abstinance until marraige as I do."

Helium tried to concentrate on finding the items, but it was no use. Once the admin had entered his thoughts, she would not leave him alone. Bits of conversations they had had over the past two weeks replayed themselves in his mind. He placed a hand on the shoulder where Twilmer usually perched, which had suddenly felt very empty. He could feel her soft fur on his cheek and the steady movements of her side as she breathed. He blushed; which stood out more predominately because of the pink robe.

Helium was so deep into his thoughts that he ran right into Emily23. Helium managed to stay on his feet, but Emily23 fell down. "Hey! Oh, it's you, Helium. You totally pwned me," Emily23 laughed as she picked herself up. One look into Helium's face showed that his mind was a hundred miles away from the city. "Earth to Helium! Hello!" She waved a hand in front of his face, and alas, nothing. "Max, why don't you use a watergun to wake up pur herbalist friend here." Emily23 grinned. Max looked at her for a second, blinked, yawned, then used the watergun attack.

"Huh?" Helium looked around. "What just happened? Why am I wet?" Helium held out his robes.

"You were daydreaming. Lol, you look so funny wet. What were you thinking about, anyways?" she asked.

"N-nothing," Helium stuttered. Emily23 raised an eyebrow at him. "I'm serious, it was nothing. I was just thinking about where the other items were."

Emily23 examined him for a second and then smiled, "Ah! Me 2! Maybe we should look together? Then again, we might fight over the same item if we did. Oh well, ttyl!" Emily23 waved as her, Bunneary, and Max walked off. Helium released a sigh of relief.

ooo

"Where is that little -beep-? When I get my hands on his -beep- he will be dead." Aura grumbled as she walked down differant alleyways, Sparia in disgust at the amount of filth that bordered the cobblestone roads. Aura didn't like hackers and with good reason, as she was a bounty hunter. Aura had long ago became slightly bored with PWO, but when she had heard that rare items were given as awards for capturing hackers and turning them in to the local moderator, she decided that excitement could be found in that. (Note: Each town has a moderator that is in charge of making sure rules are followed in that town so the admins won't have to keep visiting towns every time a problem occurs)

If her memory served her correctly, then the programming was weakest in the north-most side of town. This was because the transition from town to a differant environment wasn't always a smooth process with the graphics generator, which is why glitches were more prone to occur on the outskirts of a town. She made a detour and accessed her PWO mail. She selected Drix from her lirt of contacts and a smile played slightly on her lips as she typed a message to him.

"Drix, it seems that someone in the administrator's party has hacked into his account or has had someone hack into it for him, raising his level. Which ever the case is, hackers mean nothing but trouble. If you or any of the top ten have information involving hackers in the low level areas, please let me know. As much as I hate associating with the rest of them, it's unavoidable. Thanks, Aura." Aura sent the message and closed her mail. As much as she didn't like the top ten, she had a strange respect for Drix and his partner Salamance, who were the only player and partner combo that had ever bested her in combat. Since then, they had become friendly rivals and had respected each other's skills.

Aura ran swiftly done a path and finally found Ontaro, who seemed to be in a daze, stupidly holding a finger to his lips. Aura withdrew both her katanas and placed them to Onatro's throat. "Don't move," she hissed dangerously. Sparia stood on the other side of Ontaro, holding up her glowing wings in order to use a steel wing attack in necesary.

"What? What are you doing?" Ontaro asked, shocked to see the swordswoman and the Empoleon standing in front of him.

"You're level has raised by nearly 20 in a less than 18 hour time frame. There is no way this could have been done if not through hacking. I'm afraid as a bounty hunter, I have no choice but to turn you in." Aura's voice chilled the air around them. Machop stood protectively in fornt of her partner and looked Aura in the eye bravely. "Stand aside, Machop. You are not the one who hacked."

"Chop!" Machop shook her head and glared at Aura.

"She's right! I didn't hack! I don't know how my level grew!" Ontaro tried to step back, but the blades were pressed to his throat as he moved.

"We shall see," Aura kept the katanas to his throat and led him to the local moderator's station, Sparia taking the rear and watching the Machop out of the corner of her eye. Luckily the moderator had not stepped out of office to join in the Misty Dew festivities.

"Can I help you?" the moderator asked cautiously, taking in the legendary sowrdswoman and the defender that was being held hostage.

"I believe this man has hacked into the mainframe in order to raise his level by nearly twenty." Aura removed her katanas from Ontaro's neck and placed them back in thier sheaths, but was ready to draw them if they were needed.

"I didn't hack! You have to believe me!" Ontaro pleaded, his Machop nodding at what he said.

"Oy, it's just not my day," the mod muttered, "and I don't even get paid. Sure, they can pay administrators, but what about the mods? No, all we get is a price reduction for playing this game." The moderator motioned for Ontaro to step onto a small, metal platform. "Okay, we're just going to run a test on you. This will log into the virtual reality helmet that you're using and, via the nerve implements which allow you to feel pain in this world, we will run a lie detector test." The mod sounded as if she would rather have been anywhere but where she was at the moment. "Did you hack into the mainframe?"

"No! I don't know how my level got to be where it is now," Ontaro lied through his teeth and hoped that it wouldn't register. If he was thought to have been hacking, he would be banned from the game or worse; they might find out about Dream. As if reading his mind, his Machop gave him a warning look.

"Okay, it says you're telling the truth. Someone must really like you, kid, to hack into your acocunt to raise your level like that. Now, as I'm sure you don't want your level lowered back, the two of you are free to go. Leave," the mod waved them away, taking a seat in her red arm chair. Aura was about to say something, but closed her mouth, realising that it wouldn't be worth her time to speak to the mod. This mod couldn't even keep the city clean, much less help her with the problem.

ooo

Twilmer grinned when she heard what happened. Aura had just reported to her the events that had transpired. Ontaro stood back from the group, hating his life. His Machop looked up at him with worry. "I hate lazy mods, and especially Trill, the mod for this city. She doesn't like to do modwork, yet she holds it above everyone else's head that she is one." Twilmer looked over at Ontaro and grinned evily. "Too bad you didn't contact me because I have the proof you would've needed. Well, it may not have convicted him, but it shows that he was lying about what he was going to do." Twilmer opened up a PWO mail. "Look at this. It says that King Phillip III didn't get a PWO mail from you, nor did he ever ask you to mail him." Twilmer glared at him, grinning like a child with a new found authoritive position. "I say that lying to a mod and possible hacking deserves an upped warning level."

"You're enjoying this way too much," Aura said; an amused expression her face.

"An upped warning level temporarily blocks you from being able to receive benefits from events, like your fellow party members, for 14 days. It also puts your name on a list that is looked at whenever a serious hacking or crime is taking place. Your warning level can be risen or declined from that point, so don't tick me off." Twilmer stood up and twirled, raising her paws with her cheeks sparking menicingly. Victoria yawned, not impressed by the admin's show. "Fine," Twilmer grumbled and snapped her fingers. Ontaro checked his profile and saw that his warning level had been raised by one. He refrained from commenting in case his mouth made him get his level raised even more.

"Two differant level raises in one day," Aura shook her head. Victoria was glaring heatedly at Sparia because she was jealous that she had not been the hero to catch a potential hacker. Sparia was ignoring her, sniffing at the trivial and childish act. The Weavile made another rude gesture with her middle claw, which ticked Sparia off. Sparia turned and used a bubble attack. Victoria dodged and unleashed a shadowball.

"Victoria, stop it!" Twilmer demanded, but her partner ignored her, using agility to run towards the giant penguin pokemon. Her claws was glowing and she brought it down to use cursh claw, but Sparia simple held up a wing to block the attack. Sparia sniffed and watched the little pokemon unleash an icebeam. Sparia knocked this away as well and hit Victoria hard with a steel wing. Victoria fell back, badly hurt. "Victoria, they're about thirty levels higher than us. You know we don't stand a chance against them," Twilmer tried to reason with her pokemon. Victoria sat up and held her cheek where the wing had connected with her face. She growled and tried to get up, but fell down again. "Victoria."

"You're partner is a bit head strong and doesn't think before she acts," Aura observed.

"Yeah, I know," Twilmer admitted with a sigh, "but that's part of why I love her." Twilmer almost lost herself to a montage of memories involving the times the two had shared, when Ontaro cleared his throat. "What in blazes do you want?" Twilmer asked angrily.

"The herbalist is coming." Ontaro pointed down an alleyway.

"Really?" Twilmer looked. Ontaro smiled, seeing how fast the admin had reacted to this information, looking around frantically for the pink-robed man.

"Hey guys," Helium smiled sheepishly as he walked into the abandoned street where the others were gathered.

"Have you found all the items yet?" Twilmer asked.

"No, but I couldn't concentrate on them, because, well," Helium fell silent, sitting down on the bench. Twilmer jumped up beside him, looking up into his face with confusuion and a hint of annoyance. Victoria was still laying where she had fallen, her pride hurt.

"I'm going to go check up on Emily23's progress. Come, Ontaro. I think you should as well." Aura walked over to the defender.

"Not that I'm not happy that you're taking Ontaro away, but why would you want to check up on Em?" Twilmer asked.

Aura shook her head. "Tamers will be necesary in the higher level areas we're about to enter. It's key that our tamer is in good condition. That and Helium's giving off 'we need alone time' vibes." Aura smiled. Twilmer looked at her, confused. Aura just waved the look away and led Ontaro, rather roughly, down the street that led towards the square, thier pokemon tagging along behind.

"What's with her?" Twilmer asked, her tiny arms crossed across her chest. "And what does she mean by 'alone time'?" Twilmer raised an eyebrow. "So, why aren't you still participating in the event? I thought you loved Misty Dew, though god knows why."

"Well, I can't stay focused on the event because I keep thinking about…you…" Helium admitted with a blush.

"Well, yeah, I mean I am unforgettable, plus the whole reason any of you are in this party is to worship…I mean…help me, but that's still not a good excuse. You love those sappy, eye-bleeding novels," Twilmer looked up at him. She wasn't glaring, but Helium began to turn red under the stare of the beady, black Pichu eyes.

"No, not like that, you see, I just…" the words wouldn't find their way to Helium's mouth and he just ended up stuttering. He sighed and decided to put that topic aside. "I started to read the Faulkner book you suggested last night."

"Really?" Twilmer's ears perked up. "So, how do you like it? It's probably a thousand times better than that Mountain Dew writer."

"I must say, it's a very interesting style, and-" Helium began, but was interrupted as an announcement was made over the city's local broadcasting system.

"Attention gamers! Our Misty Dew contest has come to an end. We are excited to announce that the winner of our 4th week contest is none other than the tamer and Bunneary fan-"

"You HAVE to be kidding me, you don't think they mean," Twilmer began when she heard that.

"-Emily23 of the Twilmer party." The announcer continued.

"Yes, they do mean her." Helium smiled.

"Though she's a low level gamer, she's big on clue hunting. As the first to find all five items, I confer to you the award of 5000 poke as well as a Misty Dew potion. This potion acts as a love serum, causing the gamer that drinks it to fall in love with the next person they see on their party. The label will tell you all that you need to know about it. Now this item is intended only for laughs, so use it responsibly." The announcer warned.

"This just keeps getting better and better," Twilmer muttered as she, Gloom, Victoria, and Helium jumped up from the bench and began to head towards the square to meet thier fellow party members.

ooo

End Part 10

That took me waaaay too long to write, but it's done now, so please review!


	11. The Assassin's Fountain

A burly teen with a very athletic build stormed into his bedroom, adorned with football memorabilia, and threw his letter jacket over a chair. He stomped over to his bed and took off his football cleats, throwing them against the wall. "I can't believe it happened again!" He complained. "You think girls would jump at the chance to date the captain of the North Town Lions," he sighed, changing into street clothes and out of his sweaty uniform.

He walked past the poster of his favorite player, Hubert Ontaro, hanging on his wall, pausing to flex his muscles in the mirror as he walked. "I have the skills of Hubert Ontaro and more, but they don't look at that. No, all they look at is the fact that my name's Attila!" Attila slammed his fist on his desk and fell into his desk chair, running a hand through his blond hair. There was no doubting that he had the looks to go along with his football captain position, but it seemed no girl wanted to date a guy named Attila.

He sighed and started his computer up. Then again, it could also be the fact that he lied quite often. As far as his buddies knew, he got every girl he wanted to do exactly what he wanted. They didn't need to know that he was still a virgin. He also lied online, saying that he was British in the hopes to attract girls. He was a royal jerk and was a firm believer that girls were beneath him and that males were the stronger sex.

He never made the connection that perhaps it was this that pushed girls from him and always assumed that it was his name. His thoughts strayed to Dream as the computer finished booting and he loaded Pokemon World Online. He had dreams about Dream often, and they all involved the act he most wanted to commit, but could never before because of constant rejection by girls. Yes, Dream would definitely make his dreams come true.

He smiled lustfully as PWO finished loading and he placed the virtual reality helmet on his head and started the game.

ooo

Pokemon World Online

Login 11: The Assasin's Fountain

Disclaimer: I don't own the poke critters, but everything else is mine, except Faulkner and his novels. I also don't own Febreeze. Febreeze owns themselves. It seems like everyone hates Dream XD which is fine with me. I've noticed that charcters I don't particularily enjoy have bad things happen to them. Ontaro is a prime example of this, poor thing, and Machop is another.

Also, to those who read this fic at TPT, thanks for voting and making this fic an award winner. Even though there was a conspiracy on the forums there, I'm glad that all of you (10, which is my fav number) were kind enough to vote for me and allow my baby to win. Yes, this fic is now my baby XD

Ugh, I have such trouble writing fight scenes, but I hope this has turn out okay.

ooo

"I am so glad we're out of that city and out of the n00b levels. Finally we're getting to some more familiar teritory," Twilmer stretched her pudgy, yellow, Pichu arms as she rode on Helium's shoulder. The party had managed to make it from the city and were now walking along the beautiful mountain trail between the higher level areas and the begining areas. So far, thier entire aprty, with the exception of Emily23, were at levels high enough to be able to survive in the area. Helium barely made the suggested level limit, Ontaro was at the perfered level, and both Twilmer and Aura were higher than the area's top level range.

Helium breathed in deeply, savoring the smell of the flowers, or what he thought was flowers. For all he knew, it could've been the febreeze he had just used on his drom room's sink, but whatever it was, it smelled devine. Victoria was practicing some moves, hoping to catch Sparia's eye. Sparia ignored the immature Weavile and continued waddling forward, standing protectively near Aura. Aura was typing PWO mail up to Drix and was checking the latest bounty and rare item updates in case they were heading towards a good catch. Ontaro trudged along, keeping a secret eye on the admin. His Machop was happily walking down the path, stopping and picking a flower here and there, which disgusted Helium, but he chose not to say anything. Gloom was sniffing around to see if he could catch a new scent, and Emily23 was skipping along next to them; her Bunneary struggling to follow suit. Max toddled along at his own pace, snififng at the air sometimes, stopping so the smells could process in his brain, then continued waddling forward, yawning as he went.

"It's so peaceful," Helium sighed, blushing as his cheek rubbed against Twilmer's fur. Aura took notice of this and shook her head. She put her hands behind her head and continued walking. She slid her eyes to Ontaro, who seemed to be daydreaming. She was about to say something when the ground began to rumble.

"The is that?" Aura exclaimed, the PWO censer disguising her language.

"There aren't earthquakes programmed along this path!" Twilmer exclaimed.

"That's because this isn't an earthquake." Helium was looking up as a group of boulders began to slide down the mountain.

"Why do I have an alarming sense of dejavu?" Twilmer muttered under her breath. The group ran to avoid being crushed, however Emily23 tripped.

"S" Aura exclaimed, running back and grabbing the tamer. She put Emily23's arm around her shoulders and began to run as fast as she could away from the rock slide. When the ground stopped trembling, Aura slid Emily23's arm from around her shoulders and kneeled down, panting slightly from pulling that extra weight so fast. "You okay?" Aura asked.

"Yeah, but my ankle really hurts. I think I cut it when I fell. Oh this is SO not l33t!" Emily23 complained, sniffling.

"I have some herbs that can ease the pain and heal the wound," Helium offered. He produced a bottle of powder from his inventory and handed it to Aura, who treated the wound.

"Now where the f- did that come from?" Aura stood up, looking around.

Emily23 stood up and cautiously stepped on the leg, then began to jump up and down on it, smiling. "It's completely healed! Thanks so much Helium!" Helium blushed at the compliment. Meanwhile, his level went up due to his powder being successfully used.

A cackling laughter caused the party to look up. A group of rough gamers and thier pokemon glared down at Twilmer's party. "You guys pushed the boulders, didn't you?" Twilmer glared at them. "I should so raise your warning level, in fact, I think I will. Done, now run along before I decide to raise it even more."

"Like we care." The burliest member stepped forward. He was wearing a red muscle shirt and was ripped. His pants were ripped and he looked lsightly like a pirate. He had a bandana over his head and a tattoo of an Omanyte on his left shoulder. The group slid down the mountain side from where they had been standing (which was only about five feet from Twilmer's group) and glared at them. Twilmer's party was outnumbered two to one. "So you must be the talking Pichu everyone is talking about."

"What about it? Wait a second," Twilmer had just noticed the Omanyte tattoo on the man's shoulder, "you're Helix!"

"Assasins," Aura hissed, pulling out both her Katanas and pointing them towards Helix.

"Correct," Hewlix sneered. Beside him, his Scizor held it's claws up mencingly.

"I don't understand though, what are assasins doing here? I thought assasins only hung out in the highest level areas in the mountains." Twilmer pondered, paw to chin.

"Not if they have a target." Aura shifted her weight so it was evenly balanced on both her feet. Sparia held up her wings and glared at Helix.

"What are assasins?" Emily23 asked, edging her way behind Aura and Sparia.

"Assasins are groups of gamers that take pleasure out of completely depleting other gamers HP. They are also known as PKers, meaning player kill. They are usually composed of swordsmen and grace masters, but lately, all jobs have wanted in on the action. Assasins are illegal, but that doesn't stop them from forming. They can be persuaded from thier hang outs, which are usually in the mountains of the higher level areas, if they have been paid to take out a target." Aura explained, eyes narrowing as she silently sized Helix up, Spaira doing the same with his Scizor.

"And by some luck, we have the leader of one of the top group of assasins in our presence," Twilmer spat sarcastically. "So who hired you, anyways? I know you wouldn't be out here unless someone had hired you."

"Ah, you would be correct in that guess, but it is not the way of the assasin to reveal our sources unless it profits us in some way. Now, will the talking Pichu come silently, or do we have to get rough?" Helix cracked his knuckles.

"Like h- she's coming silently!" Aura rushed forward, twin katanas attack viciously. Helix sidestepped the attack and one of the other assasins blocked Aura's attack. "Maybe there's a nice bounty to be had in thsi group," a small smile played across her lips. She used her katanas to back slash someone approaching from behind, then used the energy from that attack to damages the girl in front of her.

"Wait until I get my hands...err...paws on you! Oh I'll ban you so hard!" Twilmer and Victoria lunged forward. Twilmer charged herself and volt tackled Helix. Victoria slashed at Scizor, who blocked her claws. Ontaro used his shield to hold back an assasin defender who had thrust himself at Onataro.

"Wait a second, I know you," Ontaro said through teeth clenched with the strain of keeping his shield up. "You're Yagasaki!" The defender looked up in surprise.

"How did you know my name?" Yagasaki asked, his brown eyes and tanned skin giving him the look of an Egyption pharoh. Ontaro, however, didn't get to explain how he knew the defender, because Ontaro had to dodge a spell form a mage. He held his shield up firmly, his Machop knocking rocks out of the way as Ontaro walked backwards so he wouldn't trip. Onataro finally managed to deflect the attack right back at the mage. He smiled when his attack hit it's mark.

Helium rummaged through his potions and powders, trying to remember which did what in the heat of battle. He threw differant powders, poisoning some of the assasins, putting others to sleep, and stunning a very surprised grace master. Gloom used petal dance on any assasins that tried to get to close to Helium, since he couldn't defend himself.

"It's funny seeing the infamous Twilmer being reduced to a yellow fuzzball, and also quite satisfying," Helix laughed as he dodged a spark attack, swinging hiss word and barly missing the admin. "It's about time I paid you back for all the trouble you caused the assasins."

"How dare you talk to an admin like that! Try saying anything disrespectful to me again, and you can say goodbye to your gaming career!" Twilmer growled.

"SUch big words coming out of such a little admin. What are you going to do, static me to death?" Helix smirked cockily.

"I'll make you eat those words with ketchup!" Twilmer growled, lunging forward.

"Why ketchup?" Helix asked, confused.

"Because everything tastes better with ketchup," Twilmer shocked him in his moment of confusion and distraction. "That'll do," she smirked.

Behind Twilmer, a Rhydon had started charging forward. "Oh no you don't! Don't you hurt Miss Pichu," Emily23 shouted as she used the broad end of her pole to block the way. Rhydon paused, looking up at the skantily clothed, puny little girl. He snorted and went to charge again. "Bunneary, use ice beam!" Emily23 commanded. Bunneary nodded and froze the Rhydon in it's tracks. Emily23 jumped up and down in joy, however Rhydon simply lifted it's feet and was free of it's imprisonment. "Not good," Emily23 whimpered. Bunneary jumped up, then came down hard on Rhydon, using a bounce attack, however the attack had little effect on the Rhydon.

"Who in the pokemon online world would be stupid enough to hire someone to capture an admin," Twilmer wondered as she dodged an attack. Victoria covered her, using powder snow to drive Helix away. Twilmer used what agility her Pichu body had, but it wasn't enough. She still wasn't used to attacking in this new body, plus it didn't help matters any that Pichus also damaged themselves when they attacked. Twilmer knew she couldn't win, but she wasn't going to give up without a fight. "I'm so close to finally having a good party that I can't give up now," Twilmer motivated herself silently.

Vicotira rushed forward and slashed, causing a long gash to appear on Helix's chest. He looked up at her slowly, a snarl escaping from his lips as he lunged forward feircly. Twilmer jumped aside with the grace of a pudgy Pichu, falling down. As she struggled to get back to her pudgy, yellow feet, she felt two strong claws grab her arms. She looked back and saw that the Scizor had grabbed her. She struggled, but the Scizor had a death grip on her. She was so tired from all the electricity that she had used against Helix that she didn't have the energy left to zap the bug pokemon. "HELP!" Twilmer screamed, letting her dignity take a break in this life-threatening situation.

"Aw S-" Aura cussed. She ordered Spaira to use an icebeam to stop Scizor. Victoria also used her icebeam, to not be outdone. The attacks barely missed.

"Stop, unless you want your precious admin turned into mincemeat," Helix grinned, having Scizor fly low so that he hovered beside him. "Now, I suggest all of you come quietly or you'll never see your precious admin again." Twilmer wouldn't meet the eyes of anyone in the party, ashamed that she had let herself fall in such a situation.

"F-," Aura cursed. There wa snothing that could be done while Twilmer was held captive like this. Aura placed her katanas loosely in thier sheaths so that they could be easily drawn if need be.

Helix laughed, enjoying the outcome of things. "Alright then, follow me," he beckoned with a hand. The entire group followed in a death march up the hill. Twilmer was shaking slightly, embaressed at the entire situation. Helium was worried for Twilmer, becoming angry in a way that surprised him at Helix and his Scizor. Emily23 made sure her Bunneary was with her, afraid to let it fall behind them where the assasins pokemon (Aggron, Rhydon, Absol to name a few) were gathered to make sure no one escaped. Ontaro noted that the admin did have weaknesses, and was mentally prepairing to send them in a mail to Dream at his next possible oppertunity. Aura was just plain ticked off. She could've easily taken down most of the group by herself, however she couldn't risk the admin being hurt. Her mind was racing with ways to save the admin. Whenever she was assigned a job, she made sure that she completed it.

"Here we are. Company, halt!" Helix called to the assasins. They stopped, as well as Twilmer's party. Twilmer looked up to see a cloaked figure standing near a fountain. The fountain appeared to be roughly carved out of the rock that formed the mountain. It wasn't much of a fountain, as water barely bubbled in it, but it was a magnificent sight none-the-less. "We brought you the talking pichu, your honor," Helix bowed.

The cloaked man took in the party members. Aura flinched lsightly when his gaze fell across her. He then took in the Weavile, who was standing protectively near the Pichu, who didn't look happy to be in the clutches of a Scizor. "Is this the talking Pichu, or is it an imposter?" thec loaked man asked. Twilmer's ears perked up slightly as the voice was rather familiar to her.

"Yes, she's quite the talker as well, as I'm sure you know." Helix motioned towards Twilmer, who was ignoring him and trying to see through the shadows covering the figure's face and see if she could recognize the cloaked man.

"Prove it." The cloaked figure crossed his arms across his chest.

"Okay, talk Twilmer!" Helix commanded. Twilmer raised an eyebrow at him. Did he think that she was stupid? There was no way in heck that she was going to talk.

"Pichu?" she said, smirking at Helix, who looked like he wanted nothing more than to skewer the Pichu.

"D- it, talk!" Helix commanded. Twilmer was mocking him now, saying Pichu as she grinned up at him.

"Move aside," the figure ordered. Helix bowed as he stepped aside. The figure looked at the party, and grabbed the member closest to him, which happened to be Helium. Twilmer glared at the cloaked figure in surprise and alarm. Helium gave her a look that told her to be quiet. "We'll see how quiet she is when I slit this herbalist's throat." A sword appeared in the cloaked mans hands. Helium shook his head at Twilmer, but Twilmer had had enough.

"Let him go! I'm the one you want!" She shouted.

"Ah, it seems we do have the right pichu," the cloaked figure nodded at Twilmer, "and now, I will finish this one off." To Twilmer's death glare, he responded, "I never said that I'd stop if you spoke up."

Twilmer stared at the cloaked man with more fury pulsing through her body than she had ever felt before. "That's it," She began to struggle, and as she struggled, her character began to flash. It seemed that the Pichu graphics were becoming glitched. Suddenly, in another flash, Twilmer the grace master stood where the Pichu had once been held captive. Scizor had dropped her in his surprise. Twilmer looked down at her body and clenched her fists. She didn't even take time to think about how she had just become her former grace master self. She lunged forward, her white robe fluttering about her amethyst leotard clad body. The fur ruffled as she jumped forward agilely and the gold and silver designs on the back of her robe seemed to dance as she ran.

The cloaked figure slashed forward, and she dodged, jumping up in agility that one would think impossible of her in the white boots she wore. He dropped Helium in the process, who caught himself with his hands. He looked up and his face turned three shades redder as he viewed Twilmer's true form.

Aura took that as a sign to begin kicking some serious tail. She drew her katanas and slashed at Helix. Emily23 jumped out of the way of the mass confusion that followed and landed right in front of an angry Absol. She blinked, then looked at it seriously. She used the blunt end of her pole to catch the Absol's feat, causing it to stumble and fall. "Bunneary, high jump kick!" Emily23 commanded, Bunneary obeyed, jumping up and coming down on the Absol. The Absol stood up shakily, and Emily23 held the broad end of her pole in front of the Absol. It looked up at her and bowed, showing its submission.

Ontaro tried to find Yagasaki to talk to him, but there was such mass confusion that trying to find anyone at the moment was impossible. Aura jumped up and released an attack, her Empoleon backing her up. Sparia released a fury of steel wing attacks, causing several of the assassins to faint. Aura made sure that she seriously injured her opponents without fainting them to regulate her level so it wouldn't go above 90.

Twilmer leaped up and drew her staff from her inventory. Her staff was silver and adorned with amethysts as well. It crackled with shadow energy. Victoria came over and aimed a shadow ball at their opponent as Twilmer leaped forward and placed her staff in the shadow ball's path. The shadow ball was intensified tenfold and hit its mark.

The cloaked man's hood fell from his face in the struggle, and Twilmer gasped as she saw who her opponent was. "Ken Sugimori!" she gasped. Ken Sugimori was one of the group of seven that worked closely with the game's creator, Satoshi Tajiri. He was responsible for designing new artwork on new pokemon created for expansion packs.

He didn't respond. He called a Ninetails to his side and climbed on its back. He then took off in a flying leap. Twilmer dropped her staff as her character became glitched once more and she found herself as a Pichu once again. Her ears drooped as she watched the retreating figure of Mr. Sugimori. "Forget this; if there's no one to pay us, I'm out of here!" Helix cried, calling his assassins to him. The group helped to heal their fallen members and the pokemon, then warped from the area.

"That couldn't have been Mr. Sugimori, could it?" Twilmer asked Aura as she waddled over towards the swordswoman.

"It could've been an imposter or a shadow shifter, but…" Aura trailed off.

"Yeah, you're right. I can't believe that I even considered Mr. Sugimori could've done ordered for my assassination. Well, I suppose we better head out. I don't want to be in this area longer than we have to." Twilmer responded, jumping on Helium's shoulder. Aura opened her mouth to say something, but decided against it. Something told her that crushing Twilmer's perfect outlook on PWO Corp wasn't the best thing at this moment. The admin could be so naïve about things like that.

"Twilmer, how did you change back into your other form?" Helium asked, a faint hint of a blush still stained his cheeks.

"I told you when we first met that I had done it once before. I'm not sure how, but sometimes the glitch on my character is lifted. It mainly happens when I'm in danger." Twilmer shrugged. She didn't feel like talking at the moment, and Helium respected that wish by keeping his mouth shut. The group walked form the mountain, each lost in their own thoughts, except for Ontaro and Aura, who were busy using their PWO mail.


	12. Extra 1 The Kissing Lesson

Pokemon World Online

Login 12 (Extra 1): The kissing lesson

Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon, Febreeze, Faulkner, myspace, or stuff like that, but everything else is mine...except Aura, who is owned by Moya. Anyways, Moya had an odd dream the other night where Aura decided to teach Helium how to kiss, so he could kiss Twila, should they ever meet in real life. Well, as so much plot has been going on lately, I decided to take a break with this little extra from her dream ; as she put it, Aura would be one to mess with people like that. I plan on doing little extras like this every once in a while when the plot gets to heavy, or if I just have an idea for one. So, let's go forth.

This fic is dedicated to Moya's REM stage of sleep. Yay REM! My friend John David has such a deep REM stage of sleep that he can't wake up from it unless something cold is placed on his chest. SO, basically the band likes to do stuff to him while he's asleep so deeply (unbutton his shirt, draw on him...one time one of the guys kissed him o.o) so I feel it's my job to make sure he knows what happens to him while he's asleep and to protect him from some of the more...embaressing ideas.

BTW, Yagasaki is a charcter that Treecko(no) made up as his rival in the rpg based off of this fic. I forgot to credit him in my last part with owning the idea for Yagasaki.

Another note, and more embaressing, I had to use a Seventeen magazine for kissing tips, because my kissing experiance is about the same as Helium's. People have kissed me, but I just kinda stood there and was like "Okay?" yeah, I'm pathetic ;

ooo

Taking off her blue and black swirled vest, Aura began her exercise routine. She remembered every move perfectly, every single strain of muscle, as she practiced her katas - swords at one with her body, moving gracefully from one battle stance to other, ever so slowly, with inhuman precision. It took her lot of time to learn them by heart, ever since the game was released and she got herself under Grim's care. He hadn't been the most patient teacher, nor she was perfect student, but somehow they seemed not to kill each other immidiately, which usualy was a good sign.

Using two swords together was rarely, if ever (with the exception of Aura) used in the entire game. Using two swords left one open for a wide variety of weaknesses, lowering the defense to the point that a certain hit could prove fatal, though Aura's attack was through the roof. Her two katanas were complete contrasts of each other, one with a black hilt and sheath and the other with white. She had named them Getsuei and Taiyou (Moon and Sun) respectively. Somehow through this weakness, Aura had become even stronger. This statement was true for other areas of her life as well. Even though she was easily one of the strongest players in the game and could probably take down half of the top ten players in the game single handedly, she kept her level moderated so she would never enter their ranks again. She had been in the top ten when the game was still new and had fewer members than now, and she hated it. Top ten members were ofton asked to run ridiculous missions for the suits. Most of the top ten took it as an honor, but Aura saw it as a pain and left thier ranks as soon as she could She was a loner and hated being in a party-like group as she had been.

She had made one strong friend in the ranks of the ten. His name was Drix. While she still kept in contact with many of the ten, Drix was the only one she felt was a true friend in that gang. By true friend, she meant someone she could spar with, cuss with, and even bash around while angry. They had an odd friendship, but it fostered mainly from the aspect that they had a mutual respect and rivalry for each other. Sparia and Drix's Salamance were the same way. Their fights had always ended in a tie, and it infuriated Aura that they did so, but eventually she grew to accept them and learned from them Aside from Drix, Aura had a wide variety of contacts so that she could get top information on the latest items and bounties available. Aura was attracted by rare items, such as the goggles she wore and the katanas she was currently practicing with. She was selfish (she'd admit that herself) and would never share the items unless extremally necesary, and even then...

She was such a contrast to Twilmer, who seemed to be playing the game soley for PWO Corp. Still, Aura would protect Twilmer with her life, if necesary. Once she agreed to do a job, she would finish it no matter what. She had been sent to protect Twilmer, and as much as she hated being ordered around, they had offered Aura something that she couldn't refuse. It had seemed impossible at the time, but Aura had accepted anyways. She had never done well in parties, but this one seemed to fit her fine.

Speaking of which, thier current party was offline, except Twilmer, who had left with Victoria to train. Twilmer was completely unaware that Aura was still on. A sudden chiming sound, that signaled that someone in thier party had signed on, startled Aura from her exercises. She cursed at having allowed something so trivial to startle her. With a sigh, she place her katanas back in thier sheaths and looked around to see who could've logged on this late at night. Her question was soon answered as a familiar Pink-robed man entered her range of sight. "On a bit late, aren't we?" Aura asked with a scowl.

"Well, I have the dorm to myself while Ben is away, so I decided to log on and hopefully raise my level. I know I'm one of the weakest on the party. Plus, I couldn't sleep." As Helium said that last sentance, a blush stained his cheeks. Aura smirked when she saw it. Helium tried to cover it by asking, "So what are you doing on?"

"I had a deadline to meet, so I've been working on it all night. I decided to come online for a bit to unwind and to loosen up. My job gets pretty stressful, but it's nothing I can't handle," Aura added cooly, running a hand through her dark, short hair.

"What's your job?" Helium asked, taking a seat on a stone bench. Several benches lined the mountain path for weary travelers.

"I'm a fashion designer in real life," Aura said simply, sitting on the other end of the bench. She had never really talked to Helium before, and he seemed like a nice guy. She could also tell he cared a lot for the admin. She was also bored. With a sly smile, she asked, "So, what's with you and Twilmer?"

"Huh?" Her question had startled the boy, who was blushing furiously and looking around frantically, to make sure Twilmer wa sout of ear shot. His reaction amused Aura. "What do you mean?"

"Well, it seems to me that your feelings for her run deeper than friendship. Plus, she rides on your shoulder everyday and you seem to enjoy that too much," Aura commented, narrowing her eyes at Helium, who fidgeted under her glare. Aura was, perhaps, enjoying this a bit too much.

"Well," Helium began to stutter, then threw his hands up. He was never one to hide his feleings well. "Maybe," he said lamely.

"Maybe?" Aura raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, yes I do. I'm not sure why, but it seems I can't escape her, even in my dreams," Helium sighed. It actually felt good to tell someone the feeling that had been nagging the back of his mind.

"Well, are you going to do anything about it, or are you just going to keep it to yourself and occupy your daydreams with her?" Aura asked, checking for dirt under her finger nails.

"Well, I mean, she's an admin and I'm just at level 24, so I mean, things would never work out between us," Helium mumbled.

"Oh quit your bellyaching and suck up!" Aura was annoyed with Helium's mumbling. She had never had much patience with people like him. She examined her nails, then used a small, rare, ruby-encrusted pocket knife to remove some dirt from under her pinky finger. "For one, Twilmer's reading a Misty Dew romance novel because of you. I'd say that that's enough for anybody. Plus, don't take that p- poor attitude because I can't stand that."

"Well, I suppose that's true," Helium said thoughtfully. A small, hopeful smile crossed his face.

"Alright then," Aura said. The two sat in silence for a bit. Aura finished cleaning her nails and put the knife back into her inventory. She was soon bored with the silence, and decided to mess with the poor pale-skinned boy some more. "You thought about kissing her?" Aura asked.

"What?!" Helium exclaimed, looking up at her. His face was so red that it put an apple to shame. "Of course not," Helium said, hesitantly.

"Oh come on, as often as you've read those romance novels, you've never once thought about kissing her?" Aura found that hard to believe.

"Well, okay, maybe I have, but I'm not any good at kissing," Helium sighed, placing his hands in his lap and wringing them together nervously.

"How do you figure?" Aura asked, her interest piqued.

"Well, I used to have a girlfriend a few years ago, and one night she kissed me, and it was very awkward, and then after that she never kissed me again. I felt so confused, and I wasn't sure what to do, so I just stood there. Then she dumped me a week later, so I just always figured that I couldn't kiss," Helium sighed.

"Hmm, and I bet Twilmer's had tons of experiance in that department," Aura pondered aloud, causing the pink-robed male to promptly fall off of the bench that they were sitting on. "Oh sorry," Aura apologized with a hint of amusement at Helium's reaction. She felt a little guilty for teasing him like that, so she decided to make it up to him. "Helium, I can fix that problem of yours so you can kiss Twilmer, should you two ever meet in real life, or wahtever the circumstance."

"How?" Helium asked, rubbing his cheek, which he had fallen on.

"Why, kissing lessons, of course," Aura said as if that should've been his first thought.

"Kissing lessons?" Helium repeated, looking up at the top swordswoman with strained interest. He silently wished to himself that he hadn't logged on. He had just been hopeing to discuss the novel with Twilmer. Then again, maybe this lesson could have it's benefits.

"Yes, now when you kiss, you need to feel confident. I really don't like kissing guys that much, but form what I remember, I can give you great tips." Aura looked down at her pupil, who bowed to her. Aura smiled and Helium returned the smile. Helium had a question buzz through his mind at Aura's comment, but though better of it, knowing that Aura wasn't one to be interupted. "Okay, first of all, aim." Aura punched one fist forward.

"But, am I not supposed to close my eyes when I kiss someone?" Helium asked, confused. For being an extremally smart student with a high IQ, Helium knew nothing when it came to girls and relationships. In that sense, he and Twilmer would probably have great chemestry.

"This is going to be harder than I thought," Aura thought to herself, smacking her forehead. "Okay, yes, closing your eyes is pretty much perfered, but make sure you know where you're going first." Helium was already blushing and they hadn't even gotten to the part about the actual kissing. "Girls like a surprise, but they also like the basics, so I'd say that good advice would be to first lean in and brush your lips against hers. Tucking a lock of hair behind the ear adds extra intimacy to this moment. Also, don't ask to kiss the girl first, just do it. It really p- me off when someone asks to kiss me."

"Should I tuck the hair behind the ear before or during the kissing?" Helium asked attentively.

"Well, I'd say before is best as doing it during kissing can be quite a distraction. Well, I've gotten your lips together. After that, just do what comes naturally and what you feel your partner respond to." Aura finished. She could've gone into greater detail, but didn't feel as if the blushing herbalist could take it.

"Thanks!" Helium exclaimed, a little to excitedly for Aura's tastes. She waved the compliment away.

"Just promise me that you'll stop doing this blushing, love sick teen crap around Twilmer. You should really try telling her instead of being so indirect." Aura offered one final bit of advice. Helium nodded and logged off excitedly.

At that moment, Twilmer and Victoria walked over to Aura. "What are you doing on so late?"

"Oh, just helping a poor, confused soul and probably confusing him even further." Aura smiled, looking down at the pudgy, yellow rat.

"I don't want to know," Twilmer shook her head.

ooo

That night, Demetrius had dreams about kissing and Twilmer, and both in combination. The next morning, Ben walked into the dorm room with his luggage and was startled to find his room mate frenching a pillow in his sleep. Ben grinned slyly and quickly took a digital photo of the moment. "The guys on myspace are going to love this."


	13. Realization

"ESKARINE! I KNOW YOU'RE THERE! You are two hours late for your deadline! ESKARINE! PICK UP THE DANG PHONE! Well, I guess I have no choice but to drop you...Eskarine? I was just kidding! Oh fine, call me when you get this," the answering machine pinged off. Eskarine smiled to herself as she sat back admiring the new design she had just completed. The message she had just received was one of five she had received in the past five minutes, each counting down the time. "You are one hour and fifty-eight minutes late!" and so forth. HEr manager really freaked out whenever he didn't have her design on time, but she knew that despite his threats that he'd never drop her. She was too valuable as her designs sold faster than copies of Pokemon World Online's latest expansion pack.

Eskarine stood up from her chair and walked around her apartment. It was really fancy with all the comforts she could ever want. Rare persian rugs adorned the floors and rare vases were on display along the wall. Eskarine enjoyed rare items. She walked over to the refridgerator in her kitchen and pulle dout assorted vegetables to make a salad with. Eskarine figured that there were enough crappy reasons why animals had to die and didn't want to add to those reasons by using them for her nourishment. Nope, vegetables suited her just fine. She had been a vegetarian ever since she was a teenager.

In the process of adding a small bit of 1000 island dressing (never too much or it would over power the natural taste of the vegetables), she accidently got some on the sweater she wore. She cursed under her breath and strolled over to her bedroom, opening her cwalk in closet, which was full of rare and expensive clothing. Prada and other such brands filled the shelfs. She, however, owned no fur or designed her clothes with fur as she despised the unnecesary killing of animals. She settled on a tight fitting blue tank top with the venus (or female) symbol embrodered on the front with silver thread. The shirt showed a little bit of midriff. Despite the fact that she was a fashion designer, she never wore her own designs.

She then realised that her tank top didn't match the green pants she was wearing and changed into a pair of blue camo capris. The capris were perhaps a bit longer on her then the normal person as she was a bit height impared. She wasn't short enough to shop in the petites, but she was also not tall enough for capris to fit her perfectly. She went to the kitchen and took her salad to her desk, bringing along a well measured margarita. Eskarine had the talent of mixing drinks to perfection; a talent she developed from a friend she had who worked at a bar and taught her the skills. Esk had a wide range of contacts.

As she sipped her drink and looked out the window-taking a bite from her salad-she saw a taxi cab come to a screeching halt, narrowly missing hitting a newspaper boy. Eskarine set down her food, losing the desire to eat. She walked over to her couch and layed down for a minute. She took a faded picture from her wallet of a beautiful girl. "Madeline," Eskarine said aloud, feeling the familiar shape of the words as they left her mouth. She stared expressionlessly at the picture in her hands. She sighed and put it back into her pocket. She sat up and heard the phone ring. A small smile curved onto her lips.

Just as she had predicted, the answering machine picked up and it was her manager. "Two hours and five minutes, Eskarine, FIVE MINTUES! You're going to be in a lot of trouble! Hurry up and bring your design. I know you're there. Please, I'm begging you, bring that design here pronto!" Eskarine shook her head and walked over to her salad, taking a few more mouthfuls. She started her computer as she ate and sipped her drink. She should really bring her design in before the manager had another panic attack. Eskarine grinned and thought that keeping him on the line would be more fun.

She really didn't want to go outside at the moment either, with all the cars. She hated riding in cars and was glad she only lived a few blocks from her place of employment. She had her license, but she supposed it was that night that had made her abhor cars. Eskarine booted up Pokemon World Online and placed the virtual reality helmet on her head. As soon as she logged off, she would bring the design to her manager. As the phone rang again, Esk typed in her password and smiled to herself. Perhaps making the manager wait until tomorrow wouldn't be such a bad thing.

ooo

Pokemon World Online

Login 13: Realization

Disclaimer: I don't own febreeze, Faulkner, myspace, Prada, or anything like that. I also don't own Yagasaki (Trecko(no)) or Aura (Moya) or Drix (who owns himself) but I do own the other charcters. I do own Misty Dew and Ontaro, but I don't really want them XD yes, after that nice little break with Helium and Aura, it's back to the plot. This part is dedicated to Treecko(no) and Drix for allowing me to use thier incredible charcters.

ooo

Twilmer and her party had come to the base of the mountain, where the trees were begining to grow thicker. After the Crydal Forest, the first town of the higher level areas would be upon them. Twilmer was currently bragging to the party, who were all pretty much ignoring her, save for the pink-robed herbalist. "That's right, level 70! I suppose the fight that chased that phantom Mr. Sugimori away was enough to finally level me up. It's just too bad that I can't level up while I'm a Pichu, or you'd bet I'd be high enough to be in the ten in no time." Twilmer bragged.

Aura snorted at her last comment. "Oh yeah, big deal, the top ten." she grumbled.

"What's with you? Everyone else would be dying to join the top ten, but you were in it and gave it up! I just don't understand," Twilmer shook her head.

"I wouldn't expect you to, but I have my reasons. Like you, I enjoy a certain degree of privacy." Twilmer noted that and nodded in agreement, not pressing the matter anymore. She would have loved nothing more than to understand the legendary swordswoman and rare double blader, but something told Twilmer that that would be a gradual process. She had great respect for the woman, which was the only thing that made her keep her mouth shut. She also understood the need for privacy on the online world.

"Your true form is very beautiful," Helium commented, blushing as he said it.

"Well, what did you expect from the great Twilmer?" she asked, putting a paw behind her head and blushing as well, though no where near as deeply as Helium. Aura rolled her eyes at the two, finding thier antics very childish.

"Get a room," Aura grumbled. Twilmer shot her a very dirty look, but Aua neither noticed nor cared.

"We should be coming up to a cave soon which leads to Fuwaru Town and into the higher level areas, which we have still yet to encounter," Ontaro commented as he looked at his map.

"Good, we're making good time then. At this rate, we'll be able to delete that glitch and go back to our normal lives in no time," Twilmer smiled, however Helium didn't seem to share her enthusiasm on the situation. Twilmer had never been through the Crydal Cave before, since she had taken the mountainous path on her way to the high levels almost a year ago when she first got the game, so this would be a new adventure to her.

Victoria kept using various varieties of slash attack while looking up at Sparia. Sparia found it increasingly hard to ignore the immature Weavile. Each slash connected with a rock, making a loud clang. Each clang was followed by a smirk and a cocky "Weavile." Each cocky "Weavile" was followed by another slash of the claw. The endless cycle bore into the Empoleon's brain until she couldn't take it anymore. "EMPOLEON!" Sparia shouted, turning and staring down the Weavile, who stared back with an egotistical smirk on her face.

Aura, Twilmer, Helium, and Emily23 turned to look at the pokemon. Ontaro was busy typing away on PWO mail and didn't look over. "What did she say?" Emily23 asked.

"She said 'ENOUGH' to Victoria," Twilmer translated, able to udnerstand the complex language of pokemon, being one herself at the moment.

Weavile looked up at Sparia and put her claws behind her head, leaning against a rock with an air of self importance. "Weavile?" Weavile asked with feigned innocence. "What did I do?" Twilmer translated.

"The whole show off act is very childish and I here by ask you to stop this foolishness," Twilmer translated.

Weavile looked up at the angered Empoleon and waved her claw, as if Sparia were beneath her and no where near as important as the pokemon partner of an admin. Sparia was usually able to tolerate a lot, but Victoria was pushing her last nerve. Victoria pulled down her eyelid and stuck out her toungue at Sparia and she lost it. Sparia rushed forward with iron wings out on either side. Victoria dodged the attack and unleashed an icebeam.

"Victoria, stop!" Twilmer commanded, but her words fell on deaf ears as Victoria jumped up and came down with a crush claw attack. Sparia grabbed her claw in her wing and tightened her grip. Victoria's face twisted in pain as Sparia's grip grew tighter.

"That's enough!" Aura shouted. Sparia looked up at her and let go of Victoria, who fell to the ground. Sparia seemed embaressed to have lost control like that. Victoria lay on the ground, nursing her claw. She had never before felt such pain. She looked up at Sparia and stood, holding her arm, glaring at her. Sparia sneered down at her.

"Little one, you'd best leave me alone if you know what's good for you," Sparia told her. Victoria found angry tears coming to her eyes. She had always prided herself on never losing a battle, but it seemed that she could not win against Sparia. Victoria futily attempted to slash at Sparia, and even tried to use an ice beam. Sparia turned and used an icebeam of her own, knocking Victoria into the rock wall behind her. Victoria stood up, looking at the group around her. She started to black out and fall towards the ground. Twilmer jumped off of Helium's shoulder and rushed over to her fallen partner. Victoria caught herself, which was excruciating with her injured claw, and swatted Twilmer away.

"Victoria," Twilmer looked up at her pokemon, who stood up and ran off into the forest. "Victoria!" Twilmer shouted, running after her pokemon with as much agility as her Pichu body could muster. The party followed behind. Victoria dodged trees with the grace of a grace master's pokemon and ran into the cave. Twilmer stopped, unable to see far and unable to see in which direction Victoria had run. Weavile were built to see in the dark, so she knew it would be no problem for Victoria to navigate the darkness. "She's never acted this way before," Twilmer said quietly.

"And if I'm correct inassuming, your Weavile has never lost a battle before," Ontaro remarked coldly.

"She provoked Sparia, so she is in fault," Twilmer admitted. "Well, anyone have a light? We need to find her before she gets hurt or something worse." Twilmer looked up at her group with determination.

"Well, seeing as none of us have one, I suppose I can use some of my 'Flame of Entei' as it's not really as rare as my other items," Aura offered, bringing out the Entei shaped lanturn, which was equipped with enough fuel to garunte a trip to the underworlds and back.

ooo

A mile into the cave had still brought no sign of Victoria, and Twilmer was starting to get very worried. "Where could she be?" Twilmer wondered aloud worriedly. Victoria had been by her side since her third day playing Pokemon World Online and if anything were to ever happen to Victoria, Twilmer wasn't sure if she could bear it.

"Weaviles like the darkness, so it would only make sense that Victoria would head to the darkest place to mope." Aura flashed her lanturn around, looking for places the Weavile could've hidden.

"She's not moping, she just needs time to think about things," Twilmer defended her companion.

"So in other words, she's wallowing in self pity," Aura smirked playfully.

Twilmer's cheeks sparked dangerously and she was about to say something, when Emily23 interrupted their argument. "Bunneary has super sensitive hearing, so I bet that she could hear Victoria, right Bunneary?" Emily23 beamed down at the fuzzy cream and brown bunny. It looked up at her, and then nodded, it' floppy ears flopping in it's face. Twilmer humphed, folding her arms across her chest as she watched the bunny pokemon stand on it's tip toes and concentrate hard, holding it's floppy ears as erect as it could.

"Well?" Twilmer asked impatiently. Bunneary looked around confused, then slumped over. "Figures," Twilmer muttered under her breath.

"It seems that Bunneary can't hear well because of all the supersonic waves coming from the bat pokemon in this cave," Emily23 sighed. Helium used some of his powders to heal the fallen bunny.

"Crap, I forgot about all the Zubats who lived here. Maybe if you could tame one, then we could use it's ultrasonic to find Victoria," Twilmer suggested, looking up at Emily23.

"It's worth a shot," she giggled, twirling her pole around in a way that greatly annoyed Twilmer. but then again, what didn't? The party set off, Ontaro checking his map every five seconds so the group wouldn't get lost (he also hated the sensation of not knowing where he was), trying to find a bat pokemon. This proved almost as difficult as finding Victoria.

"For the love of Darkrai, why is it that when you don't want to find one, you get swarmed by Zubats, but when you look for one, they are no where to be found?" Twilmer asked, very annoyed at their current situation. She was also worried on top of being annoyed, which was never a good combination with the admin. "At this rate..." Twilmer didn't finish the sentance. She had a tough front to keep and tearing up would completely destroy it at the current moment.

"Patience," Aura said, looking out into the darkness. She turned the light off, to shouts of protest from Twilmer.

"Ouch, my throat," Helium croaked. Aura snickered to herself; could their brave little admin be scared of the dark. Once in the pitch blackness of the cave, the leathery wings of a bat could be heard.

"That's right!" Emily23 exclaimed, pounding her fist into her hand. "Bat pokemon like the dark." Aura turned the light back on and there was, not a Zubat, but a Bolbat in front of them. Emily23 looked up at the bat with determination, despite the fact that her knees were shaking. Behind her, twilmer was acting as if she hadn't just been clinging to Helium for dear life. Helium was also pretending nothing had happened. Ontaro snorted at the behavior of the two and Aura just looked amused. Both Twilmer and Helium were blushing.

"Okay Bunneary, we have to mess with it's senses, so sing!" Emily23 commanded. Bunneary sang, but the Golbat really didn't seem to be phased, nor did it seem to care. It fluttered to the gound and bowed to show it's submission. "What the-" Emily23 wondered aloud.

"Okay," Aura raised an eyebrow as she looked at the Golbat. Its wings drooped slightly and it sighed sadly every few seconds. It began to chirp and Twilmer snorted. "What's wrong?" Aura asked.

"This Golbat says that his wings are oddly shaped, he can't find love, his screech is way to high-pitched for a boy Golbat and that no one wants to be around him. Ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce you to emo Golbat," Twilmer snickered.

"Aw, poor Golbat just needs some love. I say we take him in," Emily23 smiled. "I think I'll name him Sunny, lol!"

"Oh yeah, Sunny the emo Golbat," Twilmer rolled her eyes. "Well, make him find Victoria!" Twilmer demanded.

"Okay, Sunny, will you use your supersonic screech to find Miss Pichu's Weavile, Victoria, k?" Emily23 smiled down at the Golbat, who seemed reluctant to obey. Sunny sighed and rose into the air, letting out a shreik that scared everyone. Twilmer covered her ears as best she could; hers being the most sensitive.

"He wasn't lieing," Twilmer groaned. Sunny stopped, upon hearing this, and began to sniffle. "Sorry," Twilmer muttered, willing to put her pride aside to find Victoria. Sunny once again began using his supersonic, and picked up the readings of a Weavile. He pointed to the left and began to fly off in that direction; Twilmer and company in tow. Twilmer noticed that his flight pattern was unusual which made his statement about his wings true also. "I wonder if the coding was off with him," Twilmer pondered, watching the unusual Golbat as he flew on.

Sure enough, after several minutes of running (Helium's special mixes helping with stamina) they came upon a part of the cave which was lined with quartz of differant shades. Victoria was perched on one of the ores of purple; amethyst. The soothing colors of amethyst soothed Victoria as it was Twilmer's favorite color and birthstone color. Victoria opened an eye to peer down at the crew. She appeared to have been crying as her eyes were slightly puffy. She sneered down at them and turned her back. "Victoria, listen, come back. We all want you back, even Sparia!" Twilmer called up. Victoria turned slightly in interest to look at the penguin pokemon, however Sparia glared at Twilmer and looked back up at Victoria with no readable emotion on her face.

"Weavile," was Victoria's simple rply, to which Sparia did not look too happy.

"What did she say, Miss Pichu?" Emily23 asked, turning to look down at the tiny admin, who seemed slightly hurt.

"She's basically saying that she'll rejoin us on one condition; if Sparia admits that she cheated in the battle they had before and declares Victoria the better battler." Twilmer looked up at the Weavile and sighed, "I guess wanting to be with her long time companion isn't enough." Emily23 patted Twilmer on the back, slightly amused at her response. Twilmer seemed to enjoy being patted on the back. She contributed this to the fact that she was a Pichu, however she shrugged her off.

"I believe we all know that Sparia would not comply, so what now?" Aura asked, placing her nimble hands on defined hips.

"Is there no other way?" Twilmer called up. In answer, Victoria jumped down and took off once again. "Darn it!" Twilmer hissed, jumping from Helium's shoulder and taking off after Twilmer. Aura and Sparia followed as well as the others, Sunny falling slightly behind. They ran into a cavern, which led to a dead end. Victoria kicked the wall and then clutched her foot in pain. At the disturbance of the sound of claw on rock, a series of chirps was heard above the group.

"S" Aura cursed, looking up to see a swarm of Zubat, Golbat, and Crobat awaken. They didn't look to happy at being awoken so soon from their slumber. Immediantly the bats dove down, attacking the group. Emily23 took to swatting some of the Zubats aside with the broad end of her pole, while Helium used a sleeping powder to put some of the bats back to sleep. Ontaro flung his sheild about, wacking some of the pokemon. Twilmer was to worried about Victoria to do anything about the bats, which weren't attacking her since she was so low to the ground.

"Victoria!" Twilmer called. Victoria turned to look down at Twilmer and sighed. Twilmer understood that Victoria held herself above other pokemon and losing to Sparia had hurt more than her just her claw, but her pride. It also made Victoria see that she wasn't the big pokemon on campus that she had thought herself to be. Victoria held out a claw, closing her eyes. Twilmer msiled and took the claw in her paw. "Alright then, let's show these bats what they've got coming to them," Twilmer grinned at her partner, who nodded confidently back.

The two sparng forth and attacked using a combination of slash and spark attack. Sparia took notice of how Victoria was able to weave through the bats with such agility and closed her eyes, clucking her tongue. The young Weavile may have a long way to go before she reaches the maturity and strength of Sparia herself, but she wasn't doing half bad at the moment. "F Bats!" Aura shouted as several Crobat got together in a group and used aerial ace. The group was ridiculously outnumbered and they were surrounded by a whirlwind of very ticked off bat pokemon. Each appeared ready to use a poison status inducing attack.

"Oh no!" Helium panicked, searching his inventory. "I don't have any poison healing items on me! I never learned how to make items that could protect or disperse against poison." He looked up at the group, worry clouding his fair face.

"Things just keep getting better and better," Aura shook her head, holding her two katanas at her side. The black haired woman did a quick look through her own inventory and saw that the only poison healing item she had in her inventory was the flower of Shaymin item, and she was not ready to give that up quite yet. Ontaro stepped forward, holding his small sheild uncertainly in front of the group, cursing under his breath as he realized just how outnumbered the group was.

Tha bats reared back and then all flew forward; the party doing it's best to brace for the attack. "Here it comes!" Helium shouted, closing his eyes and waiting for the blow to hit, however he didn't feel any pain, except the air seemed to grow colder. Helium opened his eyes to see that both Sparia and Victoria (as well as a small helping from Bunneary) had used icebeam to freeze the bats in their paths. Only the Crobats had escaped unharmed as their agility was greatly improved since they had four wings. Sparia and Victoria looked at each other and nodded. The two jumped forward.

"Alright!" Twilmer jumped up in joy at seeing her friend back in action. Twilmer used agility right alongside her and the two attacked one of the crobats as Sparia and Aura teamed up, fainting several. Together, thw two made short work of the Crobats and all the bat pokemon were laying on the floor. Sunny looked around worriedly at everyone. "You know, for helping us find Victoria, I suppose I can use my admin skills to fix your coding," Twilmer offered, feeling unusually kind to the emo Golbat. It blinked at her as she opened a control panal and made quick work of reshaping Sunny's wings and fixing his pitch, even deepening it a few octaves so it would be easier for him to find a mate. "All set." Twilmer smiled up at the Golbat, who seemed thrilled.

"You know, when the bats wake up, this one should tell the others that he fought us off single handedly," Aura suggested with a smirk. Sunny seemed to approve that idea.

"Well, it seems we've found your home, Sunny," Emily23 smiled at him as her level went up. "We're going to miss you." Sunny chirped happily at them.

"Yeah, bye, whatever. Now let's get out of here before those bats wake up, see us, and attack us...I mean we ruin Sunny's wonderful plan," Twilmer suggested.

"FInally something we can agree on," Ontaro muttered. Twilmer didn't hear what he said, but she didn't like him, so she shot him a dirty look. The group then ran out of the area as fast as they could. "Okay, now that that's over, we need to head right." Ontaro pointed. The group followed Ontaro's directions and he succesfully led them out of the cave.

"Maybe you're not so bad after all," Twilmer admitted with a smile, then mentally slapped herself. "You weirdos must be rubbing off on me. It seems I've become more sentamental lately," Twilmer sniffed.

"Lord knows we don't want that," Aura joked. Twilmer put a paw behind her head, grinning. The group shared a hearty laugh, except Ontaro and Machop, and continued onward to Fuwaru Town.

ooo

Sorry that's so long, but the next part will be a "movie" of sorts. I mean that it will be long, plot oriented, and plot twisting, just as if these past parts were episodes and it was a movie...you get it?

I plan to answer the following questions: "What exactly happens when you die in the game? What is the true nature of the PWO glitch? and Who is Dream?"


	14. Special 1 The God's Glitch

Pokemon World Online

Login 14 (Special 1): The God's Glitch

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the things I've been disclaiming for the past 13 parts and I don't own Drix or his Salamance. I also don't won the Alice in Wonderland allusions in this part. Well, here it is, the special (Movie if you will) part that'll change everything you know. Read on dear readers, read on. A note though, if some parts appear vague and confusing, that's because the information is missing on purpose and will be resolved/answered at a later time. Not much humor in this part, but that doesn't mean this fic is going to be serious form now on, I just needed to move the plot forward ;

ooo

"Fuwaru Town is just beyond the Cordon Field. If we go straight through it, then we should be able to get there before the end of the day, provided that we don't run into trouble, which we always seem to do," Ontaro proclaimed as he checked his map.

"Alright then, you heard the big man, let's go!" Twilmer pointed forward and the crew began their way through the grassland of wild flowers. Cordon Field was renowned in PWO for having the most abundant species of flora; one for each species there was known of field flowers. Thousands of different breeds spanned the area, however since the coding was so complicated for this area and was nigh impossible to restore, herbalists were forbidden to pick them. Twilmer had made sure to tell Helium this before they entered the field.

"Look at all the different kinds here! There's a tulip, and there's a buttercup. Buttercups are one of my favorite flowers, besides honeysuckle, that is." Helium was on cloud nine as he walked from flower to flower, stooping to observe it. Ontaro grumbled as Helium's flower enthusiasm was costing them precious time. He didn't dare voice his opinions on this aloud as Twilmer had gotten pretty close to Helium. Ontaro had just gained some respect from Twilmer and he couldn't risk losing that now.

"Yes, they are very pretty. I'd love to have a garden full of beautiful flowers," Emily23 sighed, clasping her hands in front of her; Bunneary mimicking her. "Though Mother would never allow it. She hates flowers," Emily23 frowned.

"How could anyone hate flowers?" Helium asked, shocked. He abruptly stood up, making Twilmer fall off of his shoulder.

"That is no way to treat an admin! Why if I hadn't a better mind, your warning level would so be going to heck in a hand basket right now!" Twilmer ranted, though her rants fell on closed ears as Helium began obsessing over more flowers. Twilmer just shook her head and decided it would be faster if she walked. She also needed to start getting used to her Pichu legs as at this rate it looked like she would have them for quite some time.

Aura walked to the left of the group, holding one of her arms in the other. She had been in this area many times before searching for items. In fact, this had been the area where she had found the flower of Shaymin that she prized. It had been one of the random events that she had encountered back when she first started the game. Back then, when there weren't so many members as there were now (only a million or so) rare events were easier to come by then they are now. The Shaymin event had been her first rare event. She could remember in detail as she and her Piplup encountered the legendary hedgehog Pokemon. Shaymin had needed their help to restore the flowers in the garden from a deathly black color to their lively rainbow of colors. Once they had succeeded, Shaymin had rewarded them by giving them the flower that she grew on her own back. Ever since, her lust for rare items in game matched that of her lust for rare items in the real world and she had became an item hunter.

Aura's eyes fell down to the ground as the flowers brought a wave of nostalgia over her. Back then the game was still new to her. Back then, Madeleine had still been alive. Aura stopped and looked down at a Marigold; her short black tresses obscuring her features. Twilmer stopped and turned to look at Aura. "What's the matter?" Twilmer asked.

Aura shook her head and looked up, running a hand through her raven colored hair. "It's nothing," Aura said, waving the comment away. Twilmer raised an eyebrow skeptically, but did not press the matter any. Aura walked along a few steps when she heard something crunch under her black leather heeled boots. "What the-?" Aura lifted her foot and saw that she had stepped on what appeared to be a green-hued crystal.

"What is that?" Twilmer asked; her Pichu ears able to hear acute sounds such as the out of place crunch. Aura pointed with her toe to the crystal like structure under it. "That's not supposed to be in this area," Twilmer mused, looking at the structure. "I sense a hacker." Twilmer furrowed her eyebrows and looked over at Ontaro.

"It's not me! I don't know anything about coding and things like that. For all I know, it could be flower boy over there," Ontaro scowled, pointing an accusing finger at Helium, who had heard none of this as he was examining a rare species of flower.

"Doubtful. That boy would never do anything that could potentially harm a flower." Twilmer sighed and began to pace back and forth. "I suppose that it couldn't have been you as only an admin or some other experienced player could make a hack this detailed. I let you go this time," Twilmer narrowed her eyes at Ontaro and went back to examining the crystal.

"Do you think it could be a glitch like the one on you, Miss Pichu?" Emily23 asked, flipping her long dirty blonde hair over her shoulder as it had fallen into her hazel-blue eyes.

"I'm not sure," Twilmer said as she lifted her head and discovered more of the crystals, "but it seems there are more over that way!" Twilmer and the rest of the party began to follow the path, except Helium. Twilmer shocked him to get his attention. He stood up and rubbed the back of his head with embarrassment. Twilmer shook her head and jumped on his shoulder as they followed the path.

The path twisted and turned through the field and as they followed it, the crystal path got wider. Eventually, the path led them to a hole, which seemed to be the source of the crystals. "I wonder if I should PWO mail PWO corp. and ask them about this," Twilmer pondered, putting a paw to her chin.

"They probably don't know anything about it and would tell you to go investigate it; am I right?" Aura asked matter-of-factly. Twilmer opened her mouth and closed it again, glaring at the double-blader. "So I am right," Aura deciphered form Twilmer's expression with a smirk. Victoria snickered at Twilmer. Twilmer glared at her, cheeks sparking. Victoria held up the peace sign with her claws placatingly.

Max yawned and walked over to the hole, sniffing it. Max inquired with a "Slowpoke?" to Helium's Gloom as the two of them had become odd friends. Gloom drooled slightly and looked down the hole. Gloom nodded and the two sat down, looking over at Helium.

"What did they say?" Helium asked, a little unnerved by the Pokemon staring at him.

"I don't know. Slowpoke never says much, and what he does say, he says so slowly that I have just ignored him." Twilmer looked over at the Pokemon, who stared back at her. It was a little unnerving to see one set of blank eyes and one set of closed eyes looking at her. Twilmer shook off that feeling and walked over to the hole, looking down. It was dark inside, save for the glowing crystals. "Should we go down this rabbit's hole?" Twilmer asked the group.

At the mention of a rabbit hole, Bunneary's ears perked up and she walked over to the hole. Looking down it, she found herself feeling as if she were drawn in. She stood on the edge of the hole, leaning over, peering into it's mesmerizing depths. "Bunneary, get away from there, you might fall, teh oh noes!" Emily23 ran over to her partner, however Bunneary jumped down before she could stop her. "Bunneary!" Emily23 shouted and jumped down after her partner without another thought.

"One idiot down," Twilmer muttered. "Well, we may as well all go now, though maybe we should have someone stay up here just in case," Twilmer looked around at her party. She didn't want to leave Helium behind and Aura was too good of a gamer to leave behind. "Ontaro stay here unless you see that things get rough or if we don't return in an hour." Twilmer ordered. Much as Ontaro hated to be ordered around by the small admin, he didn't want to enter the hole. He nodded and watched as the three and their Pokemon jumped down the hole, save for Max.

"Aren't you going?" Ontaro asked. Max turned his head to look at Ontaro and yawned. He then curled up and began to snooze. "I'll take that as a no," Ontaro sighed and sat down next to the Slowpoke. "So much for getting through this field today," Ontaro grumbled, wishing he could sign out. He opened up his PWO mail and began to type out a mail to Dream.

ooo

"AHHH!" Twilmer screamed as she fell, rushing past towers of glowing, green crystals. Twilmer was surprised at the vast underground system she was falling into, but that feeling was over ridden as she though about the unpleasant landing that they were in for if they survived the impact. Twilmer did a quick run through of her inventory and couldn't find anything to help her. "Anyone got anything to break our fall?" she called over to the other three, wishing that one of them had a flying Pokemon.

"I have a powder that can heal us after we fall," Helium suggested.

"If we survive," Twilmer muttered. "What about you, Miss item hunter?"

Aura glanced over at Twilmer and checked her inventory. She had a decent enough number of Drfitloon balloons, though whether or not they would work she was unsure of. She pulled five out and sent them through PWO mail to each player. Twilmer was tired of falling by now and grabbed the balloon that was sent to her. The balloon greatly resembled a Driftloon. Victoria grabbed the string of the balloon in one claw and Helium's Gloom in the other. The three of them hung on for dear life. Aura handed one to her partner Sparia, who took the balloon gratefully, but she had to be handed another because of her weight as she was part steel type. Helium held one, thanking Victoria for catching his Gloom. Twilmer found herself envious of the Pokemon, though she was unsure as to why. Below them, Twilmer could see another balloon, which must've been EMily23 and Bunneary. Aura held one for herself and the group steered towards one of the crystal tower spikes that were beside them. Emily23, however, was on the tower opposite them and lower than they were.

"Em, are you okay?" Twilmer called over to the tamer, clutching the glowing green spike that she, Victoria, and Gloom had landed on.

"Yeah, me and Bunneary are teh ubers! Where are we?" Emily23 called back.

"I'm not sure!" Twilmer called over, looking around at the numerous tall towers of glowing green spikes. They were all different shapes and sizes so they were easily distinguishable form the others, but the bleak atmosphere blended into one to view them all as equally intimidating. Twilmer tried hard not to look down into the bottomless abyss of the cavern they were in. The floor wasn't visible. Twilmer took out an apple form her inventory and threw it down the hole, however it never made a sound. "I guess this place is bottomless, so it's a good thing we stopped when we did." Twilmer shuddered to think about what would've happened to them if they had kept falling.

"I suggest we climb up to the top and consider a course of action when we aren't gripping onto these spikes for dear life," Aura suggested and the others readily agreed. Victoria jumped up the spikes with the agility she had been trained with and was up at the top first, yawning as if the danger had been nothing to her. Sparia rolled her eyes as she continued to climb. Her bulk and size made climbing difficult to her, but she wouldn't let it show because she knew that Victoria would probably make fun of her if she showed weakness. Emily23 and Bunneary used the pole to help steer them up the tower. Their tower was situated a bit lower than the tower the rest of the party was on, so they arrived at the top shortly after Victoria. Twilmer didn't like climbing in her short pudgy body, so she tried to imitate Victoria until she almost fell.

"Here, ride in my hood," Helium offered. Twilmer jumped into his hood without protesting. Her little body shook with fear at the thought of falling into the endless abyss below. Soon everyone had reached the top and Aura put the two Driftloons that had not floated away back into her inventory.

"Now what?" Aura asked, crossing her arms.

"This place isn't part of Pokemon World Online, that's for sure, however I've never seen a glitch that can create an entirely new area like this, so it must be a hacker, but what kind of hacker would be able to do such a grand job? It has to be someone with a lot of experience and a vast knowledge of coding, but what gamer with that knowledge would want to do something like this?" Twilmer pondered.

"That would be me," a voice with a hint of a Russian accent that was sweeter than honey drifted to meet their ears.

ooo

"You know, I'm sick of this entire thing," Ontaro ranted to Max, who yawned and looked up at the defender. Max had been unable to get to sleep because Ontaro was ranting to him, but he didn't really mind either. Machop looked over at Ontaro from her perch on top of a nearby tree as the hole was right outside the forest area where Fuwaru Town was located. She had been watching Tailow and Starly flit through the clouds above her. She climbed down and walked over to Ontaro.

"Machop Ma," she said, trying to get her condolences through to Ontaro, but he merely shrugged them off. He laid back, using Max's soft, squishy body as a pillow. He looked up at the sky and sighed.

"Twilmer doesn't respect me because she doesn't like me and she doesn't like me because I suppose I interrupted her alone time with that homosexual, Helium. Aura automatically accuses me of hacking because my level went up, which I suppose she had the right to do what she did. Helium has never really talked to me. Emily23 hasn't really said much to me either, but that's because she's too busy twirling that stupid pole of hers. I swear if it weren't for Dream I would've abandoned this freak show a long time ago. It's not like this rag-tag party could even do the things that they hope to accomplish. With the exception of Aura and Twilmer, this party's basically your average low-level party." Ontaro sighed.

"Chop," Machop said, trying to show her compassion, but Ontaro ignored her.

"I would do anything to have Dream and be off of this party. That's my dream," he sighed as he watched the clouds above him. He imagined that each cloud took the form of a football player he liked or Dream and smiled. He stood up, knocking his Machop aside who had walked over to him, and began to pace back and forth.

ooo

"Who are you?" Twilmer asked. The woman was clad and black and seemed to disappear into the darkness of the area, except her emerald eyes which seemed to have an ethereal glow to them. Dream was standing atop a tower far from the one that Twilmer was standing on.

"I am the one who can make your dreams come true. I am the one who can cause your greatest nightmare to swallow you. I am Dream and this," she motioned to a Misdreavous who floated beside her, "is Nightmare." She laughed manically and seemed to have trouble stopping.

"You're the hacker, aren't you?" Aura put her hands on her hips as she glared at the beautiful woman.

"I do not hack, I simply alternate reality so that it makes the dreams of mine and others come true." Dream held her arms up and looked towards the light that was filtering form the hole that led to the surface.

"You can't alternate a reality that doesn't exist. In case you didn't realize, this is an online game and not the real world, thus making you a hacker," Twilmer reasoned out.

"This is my reality," Dream laughed cruelly, "as it is yours, Twilmer."

Twilmer knew the words to be true, but that didn't stop her from protesting. "This is not my reality! I don't even know where gamers get such ideas. Anyways, the point is that you are hacking and in a major way, judging by this place. I am going to report you to PWO corp. and they'll-"

"They'll what?" Dream interrupted, glaring at Twilmer, her eyes becoming more dangerous as she spoke. "If they could ban me, then don't you think they already would have done so?"

"What do you mean?" Twilmer asked, confused.

"What indeed," Dream laughed, arms still spread wide. She turned her dangerous glare from the party to the base they stood on. "This is my world and you are intruding, however I am a grateful hostess. I will allow you to stay in my company if you do me a favor."

"I don't do favors for hackers...or anyone else for that matter," Twilmer admitted.

"Very well, then you are intruding and I don't like intruders." Dream disappeared into the darkness and the crystal under them began to rumble and several bits of crystal jutted out. The tower Emily23 was standing was, however, not rumbling or doing much of anything. Perhaps Dream hadn't noticed her, she thought as she watched the others. Unlike them, she had no items other than the few Bunneary items she had purchased.

"If only there was something I could do," she sighed, feeling hopeless. Bunneary sighed as well, her ears flopping over into her face.

Meanwhile Twilmer was knocked off the tower, but she managed to grab a protruding spike. "That's it!" Twilmer shouted and used all the agility she could muster to jump to the crystal spikes of the tower next to her. She made it as the towers were numerous and close together. "Jump, everyone!" she called over. Aura jumped and landed on the tower right next to Twilmer's, though a little further down. She gripped the spikes and used them to pull herself towards the top. Sparia followed suit and climbed up to be with her partner. Not to be outdone, Victoria also jumped over to Aura's tower to show Sparia that she could climb up more easily, which disappointed Twilmer as she had hoped that Victoria would've jumped over to be with her. Helium and Gloom were still on the original tower, but it had stopped rumbling now that only Helium stood on it. "That's odd," Helium commented, but he was grateful that the tower was no longer rumbling.

"That b tried to kill us," Aura growled, putting her hands on her katanas. She looked around trying to locate Dream as she knew that Dream was still around somewhere. "She's toying with us, I'll bet." No sooner had Aura spoke Dream reappeared and laughed at them.

"You amuse me, so I believe I'll let you stay." She grinned at them and lifted her hand. As it moved upward, the crystals moved to produce a throne chair, which she sat upon. She held out her hand and conjured a glass of red wine, sipping it delicately. "I must say that I never expected to see the mighty Twilmer reduced to a Pichu, but the new look suits you well." She rested her chin in her hands and sneered down at the group, who were standing on different towers in front of her. She liked it this way as it made it easy to track their moves.

"I'll make you eat those words!" Twilmer growled, jumping over to the tower Dream was resting on, however her throne disappeared and reappeared on a tower on the complete opposite side from Twilmer. Twilmer's ear dropped as she held onto the spike she was clutching. She was afraid to climb up as the spikes on this tower were smaller and she didn't want to fall.

"Your reflexes are as slow as ever, though." Dream sipped her wine and licked her red lips seductively.

"How do you know me, or has my reputation as the best administrator at PWO preceded me?" Twilmer asked, grinning arrogantly.

Dream hissed and gripped her wine glass so hard that it broke. She calmed down after that and conjured another full glass of wine, grinning like the Cheshire cat. "I'm surprised that you don't remember me," she said as she rose the wine glass to her lips, though she did not drink.

"I think I would remember meeting a freak like you," Twilmer retorted.

"Well, we didn't meet face to face, but you were a rival of mine for something that would've made my dreams come true as I had made others dreams come true, but no. You had to turn my world into a living nightmare." Dream threw the wine glass to the crystals below her, staining them red.

"What is she talking about?" Twilmer asked Aura, who shrugged and gave Twilmer a 'why are you asking me' face.

"Back then, I was a dream come true to many, so I figured that I would be a dream come true for PWO corp., but no. They turned my world into a nightmare and it's all because of you!" Dream stood from her throne and the crystal towers seemed to vibrate in anger, then everything ceased and Dream sat down calmly, humming to herself.

"This woman's mad," Twilmer whispered to Aura. Aura nodded and glared over at the woman. Twilmer jumped from the tower she was on over to the one Aura was clinging to. "We have to get out of here or that mad woman might lead us to a game over screen, which I can proudly say I've never gotten. I also don't want one anytime soon."

Aura leaped from the tower she was on to another one and made her way over to Dream, who ignored her approach and simply teleported to another tower when Aura got uncomfortably close. "What are you trying to do, hurt me?" Dream grinned. "I have other things to do, so until I return, you can play with my little friend here." Dream motioned to Nightmare, who snickered at them as Dream disappeared.

"Oh yeah, a Misdreavous is so threatening." Twilmer rolled her eyes as she hopped over to the same tower as Helium. Victoria hopped over to be near her and looked up at the tiny ghost Pokemon with a smirk. She motioned forward with her claws, telling the Misdreavous to bring it. Nightmare growled and shot a shadow ball at Victoria, who dodged it with ease.

Nightmare's eyes glowed red and she disappeared into the shadows. "Is she running away?" Helium asked.

"Doubtful," Twilmer answered, looking around the area, "but we need a plan. Anyone got one?" Twilmer asked, rubbing the back of her head; however Twilmer never received an answer as the towers began to rumble once more. Twilmer and Victoria jumped to another tower and the rumblings ceased. "It seems that the towers don't like for more than one party member to be on them at a time." Twilmer pondered aloud.

"Not the towers, the b who created the towers," Aura said crossly as she looked around her. "Now where did that d Misdreavous go?" She pulled her katanas out just as she heard a familiar laugh. Turning around, she saw a woman whom she never thought she would see again. "You," Aura gasped, taking a step back and nearly falling off the tower she was standing on.

"Eskarine," she whispered, stepping forward. Aura's eyes widened as she hard the woman say her real name and she took another step back, her foot on the edge of the tower.

"No, you can't be here," Aura whimpered, taking another step back and lost her balance. The image of the woman before her disappeared as Aura fell. "D IT I can't believe I fell for that!" Aura cursed herself. If Dream made dreams come true, then Nightmare must make nightmares come true. As Aura fell, she stabbed her katanas into the tower of crystals. They sparked, but managed to slow Aura's fall enough that she was able to get a foot hold on the protruding crystals. She took her katanas out of the tower and looked over at the others, who seemed to be facing their own nightmares. "Nightmare must want us to fall to our deaths in this endless abyss," she gritted her teeth as she climbed the tower and rushed over to help the others, but stopped as she saw Sparia was badly injured. "Sparia!" she shouted, running over to the Empoleon's side.

ooo

"Twila, it's been awhile," a dashing young man with blonde tresses, tanned skin, and a toned body strode over to Twilmer, who didn't notice that he was walking on air. Twilmer shrank back, falling over. "How I have missed you," the man walked over to her. His voice was soft and gentle and he was wearing a dapper suit. He held a rose in his hands and sniffed it before tossing it over his shoulder. "You can't say that you're not happy to see me."

"I'm not! I-you left me about eight months ago and I never wanted to see you again," Twilmer's voice broke as she picked herself up and back up.

"It was the biggest mistake of my life. I humbly apologize and hope you forgive me," he looked down at her; his blue eyes becoming a dangerous shade of red.

ooo

Helium was surrounded by bees. He began to whimper and fell down, curling up into the fetal position, as they circled him. He could hear the thunderous roar of their wings as they flew around him and feel their fuzzy bodies as they landed on him. He screamed and batted at them, but they landed on him and walked along his arms. He could feel their prickly feet as they walked along his bare hands and his face. He was paralyzed with fear as he stood up and tried to shout out to his gloom for help.

He felt tears come to his eyes as he spun around. His eyes fell on Twilmer and the dangerous looking man in front of her. "Twilmer!" he shouted, shaking off the bees as he watched the woman he cared about being approached by the man. The bees disappeared as a frowning Nightmare flashed behind Helium. She hadn't counted on his feelings for Twilmer to overcome his nightmare.

Twilmer jumped when she heard her name and shook her head. Looking up, she noticed that the man above her had changed shape and looked as if he wanted nothing more than to kill her. "Derek, you betrayed me by cheating on me with my best friend and spread false rumors about me all over Tampa. You and Alana chased me from Florida to my new home and you come back acting as if nothing has happened." Twilmer jumped forward and let loose a spark attack. The attack hit Derek and he disappeared. Twilmer smirked proudly to herself, unwilling to admit how scared the nightmare had made her, and jumped over to the tower Helium was on. "Nightmare is trying to knock us into the endless abyss," she gasped as she felt suddenly out of breath.

"I know, but where are the others?" Helium asked, looking around and notching Aura kneeling next to Sparia. Victoria was standing on the tower Twilmer had just been on, looking at her partner with a head cocked to the side. Gloom was looking up at Helium and he couldn't see Emily23.

"You go check on Aura. Since me and Victoria are better at navigating, being grace masters, we'll be able to find Emily23 more easily." Twilmer ordered. Helium nodded and began to make his way over to Aura with the help of his Gloom. Twilmer jumped to the next tower, Victoria following silently behind her.

ooo

Emily23 stared up at the face of her father. Not the father she currently had at home, but her real father. His mangled body hovered near her and she felt tears fall down her face. "Why?" the body asked.

"It's not my fault," she whispered as if trying to convince herself, "and you're not really dead."

"But I may as well be," his voice came from the mangled mouth with several teeth missing. "You're my life, Emily, and you'd rather live with your mother than me."

"No, the court just decided that Mother would be better. I still get to see you, and I love you!" Emily23 was shouting, her voice becoming strained as tears stained her cheeks. She had always felt guilty that she didn't live with her father as her father had no one. Her mother had her new husband and a new baby to take care of while her father was all alone. Emily was his only child, but the court decided that her mother, with a stable job and two incomes, would make the better parent for her to live with after the divorce. The look on his face-that crushed look of hopelessness- had never left her mind.

"You could've made the judge see differently!" he accused. Emily23's face fell as her long, dirty blonde hair obscured her face. It was a thought that always haunted her mind. If she had spoken out, could she have lived with her father? This was perhaps why she didn't get along well with her mother as she felt hatred towards her mother for not saying anything to the judge when she knew full well that Emily would rather be with her father.

She let the tears fall freely and sniffled as she wept. Her father's mangled body moved closer to her and Emily23 backed away, not even stopping herself as she fell off of the tower. She merely let a cry of despair escape her lips.

ooo

Twilmer saw Emily23 fall. "Em! EM!" she cried, but it was no use. She fell as her nightmare disappeared with a satisfied laugh. Bunneary cried after her as she watched her partner fall. "Someone help!" Twilmer shouted as she jumped from tower to tower to try and reach Emily23, but it was to no avail as she knew there was no way her little Pichu body or even her Weavile could stop Emily23's fall.

ooo

"What is wrong with me?" Dream wondered as she walked through the vast and barren dead lands at the base of Firewall Mountain. Her head felt fuzzy, though she knew she wasn't drunk as she had only had two glasses of wine and she held her alcohol quite well. Images of the past and present flashed through her head. She walked through the mountain and looked up, laying eyes on the glitch that had transformed Twilmer. "So that's the legendary glitch," she smirked as she walked over to it. The land had been frozen as the coding had been. She dipped her mind into the coding stream and gasped.

"It can't be," she looked up at the glitch and clenched her fist. The glitch contained sequences of order, which meant it wasn't a glitch at all, but something that had been placed there by someone. The coding was too perfect to be done by an amateur and since she was the only person she knew who wanted to be rid of Twilmer, she could only think of one conclusion. "PWO Corp," she hissed, backing away from the glitch.

"After they denied me the position of admin because of my supposed coding alterations and hacking, they create a glitch with the intention of riding a character of their account. Hypocrites," she raised her fist and stared up at the brilliantly coded glitch. "But why would they want to rid themselves of the person who beat me out for the administrator position?" she wondered as she examined the glitch. "No matter. I will show them to deprive me of a position for doing exactly what they do!"

Dream suddenly felt her thoughts grow clouded and skewed. She couldn't make sense of anything anymore and she fell to her knees. All rational thought seemed to leave her as she cried out...then grew silent. She stood and smirked. "I suppose I should carry out with my original plan before Twilmer came along." Dream produced a small orb and strutted away from the glitch, grinning madly for she had gone insane.

ooo

They've been gone too long. Like it or not, I'll have to go after them," Ontaro sighed as he set one foot on the rim of the hole. He heard Emily23's cry of despair and blanched. Emily23 was the only party member who had not done him wrong and it sounded as if she were in trouble. Ontaro grabbed his shield and made sure he jumped in quietly so as not to disturb Max, who had fallen asleep again. His Machop tried to follow him, but he ordered her to stay put.

Ontaro fell into the darkness and saw many crystal towers that seemed to glow green, but his eyes were only on the falling figure of Emily23. "Emily!" he shouted as he used his shield to steer his fall towards the tower. He then turned it over and stood in it, touching the bottom to the tower so that he surfed down if. He crouched low so that he went faster. He sped down and finally caught up with Emily23. He grabbed her and held her in his arms as he turned his shield with his feet so that he flew off the tower. His shield stuck in the side of another tower and stopped him, but his inertia caused his body to slam into the tower. He had his back to the tower, so luckily Emily23 wasn't harmed.

She opened her eyes and looked up at Ontaro. "Thank you," she mumbled before fainting. He sighed and positioned her so that he was carrying her piggy back as he climbed up the tower, leaving his shield stuck in the side.

"I didn't know you could do that," Twilmer said, sounding impressed as she jumped over to him..

Ontaro grinned, "Shield surfing is just one of the many perks of being a defender that attracted me to this job."

ooo

"Sparia," Aura felt tears come to her eyes, but she blinked them away as she kneeled over her Empoleon. Sparia smiled up at her, but she wasn't in good shape. She bore the unmistakable marks of a curse attack and shadow ball burns. "You took on Nightmare while we were distracted, didn't you? You're the reason why the nightmares we faced weren't as strong as they could've been." Aura's voice cracked as she hugged her brave Empoleon. Sparia smiled and closed her eyes. "No," Aura gasped as she quickly did a run through of the items in her inventory.

"Here, let me give her a revive powder," Helium suggested as he fell into the tower Aura was on. The tower he was on was higher then hers, but he still fell. Aura grabbed his wrist and helped pull him up. Helium thanked her as he got the powders out of his inventory and mixed them together. He then administered them to Sparia, who healed almost instantly. She looked up at him tiredly and nodded her thanks before closing her eyes once again.

"Rest, Sparia. You deserve it," Aura smiled, glad her partner was safe. "Thanks," she said to Helium, who blushed at the compliment and nodded. The two of them stood up and looked over at the other three members of their party.

"Let's get out of here. It's not worth exploring this area anymore." Twilmer sounded desperate as she jumped near them, leaving Ontaro to watch over Emily23.

"How?" Aura asked, looking around them at the towers which reached no where near the only exit. They had no flying Pokemon and no items that could give them a boost. Twilmer shook her head sadly as she looked around the area desperately. There was nothing that they could do.

"It seems all of you are a bit worse for the wear, but have survived. I would expect nothing less from the party of the great Twilmer," Dream appeared next to Twilmer, scaring her. Twilmer jumped.

"I'll make you pay for this. How dare you hack to such extremes!" Twilmer shouted, preparing to up her warning level until she realized that Dream's status screen was nonexistent. "How can this be?" Twilmer asked; her ears drooping.

"I am not a gamer anymore. I was reborn into this game and as such, I can not be deleted, nor can I have my warning level upped by a lowly mod." Dream smirked as she jumped gracefully from tower to tower until she was at the peak of the tallest one. "Now be glad you are here to witness this, the ultimate Dream coming true! This will make all real and will make their dreams come true!" Dream produced an orb and squatted down, letting it float from her hands into the ground.

"What the heck is that?" Twilmer asked, though after the past events, nothing really surprised her about the woman.

"It will make them real. This world is based off of another world as no world this complete can simply be a work of the imagination. Satoshi Tajiri wasn't that creative nor was his group of seven creators. His first attempt at creating a Pokemon was to duplicate the god of all Pokemon, Arceus, but that attempt failed and Arceus was lost to the infinite amount of coding that goes into this world. Through Arceus and that glitch, I found a way to make them all real, to merge the two worlds!" Dream laughed manically.

"This woman is insane," Twilmer shook her head. Nothing that Dream said made any sense. While she talked, Ontaro and Emily23 had made their way over to the rest of the party as Emily23 had woke up. Bunneary leaped over to her partner's side with the ease of the rabbit she was and hugged Emily23's leg, happy to see her.

Suddenly the towers began to rumble and jerk more violently then they had before. Zeros and ones could be seen playing across the bleak, black background. Below them, crystal began to shoot up from the abyss. "Yes, this place is reacting! Soon all of PWO will react and it will become real!" Dream laughed.

A sudden earthquake threw Helium off balance and he began to fall. Ontaro was able to catch his arm before he had fallen too far and grunted with the strain of holding him up. "Ontaro, drop him." Dream commanded, looking down at the defender.

"What!" Twilmer looked from the two of them incredulously. "Why would he obey you?"

"Because I have made his dreams come true. Ontaro, if you want your ultimate dream to come true, then you will drop the boy." Dream watched him as he looked from Helium and Twilmer to Dream. His dignity, he found, was more important to him then some party member that would be able to revive at the next log in anyways. He released Helium's wrist and watched as the surprised pink-robed teen fell, looking surprised as the crystal shooting up speared his body. Before their eyes, Helium disappeared.

"NO!" Twilmer shouted and glared at Ontaro. "How could you?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm football captain and as such, I have a reputation to keep," Ontaro answered simply, though his voice shook as he couldn't believe that he had done such a thing just to finally lose something everyone else on his football team had already lost. He felt extremely guilty, but his reputation was what was most important...right?

"You B, you are going to pay for this!" Aura drew her katanas, but a sudden earthquake that almost knocked her off balance gave her no choice but to put them up again so she could balance. She glared at Ontaro, but had to shield her eyes as a bright light blinded the party. From the shadowy depths came a shining beacon of light. As the light dematerialized, Arceus was hovering at the point where it had been brightest. He roared as he looked around and gazed down at Dream. He flew down beside her and allowed her to climb onto his back. He then glided over to Ontaro and picked the both of them up and took them out of the area.

"Great, so the god of all Pokemon is on her side," Twilmer was angry beyond all reason. Emily23 was standing beside her, looking crushed.

"How are we supposed to get out of here?" Emily23 asked quietly.

"I don't think we can," Aura said. Sparia had managed to stand up and was looking around dejectedly.

"This is a new sight; the great Aura giving up," a cocky male voice called down to them. Aura's eyes snapped open as she looked up to see Drix riding on his Salamance. She nearly kicked him for his stupid heroic appearance.

"How the f did you find us?" Aura asked, climbing aboard the Salamance; the others filing in behind her.

"Well, I was supposed to be scouting for the top ten and it was near the area you were in, so I used my map to locate you, however I noticed that you suddenly disappeared, so I came to this area and found that hole and though I'd drop in. Sure enough, there you were." Drix explained as his Salamance flew them out of the hole and landed quite a ways away from it.

Twilmer slid off and looked down at her feet. "When someone usually dies in game, their Pokemon disappears with them. Gloom is still here," Twilmer looked up at Aura, Emily23, and Drix. Drix looked away, but Emily23 came over and kneeled beside Twilmer, taking her in her arms and hugging her. Twilmer didn't knock her off this time as she collapsed into Emily23's arms.

ooo

"Where am I?" Helium asked as he seemed to be floating downward. A light seemed to guide him downward as he fell, though he fell so slowly he felt as if he were floating. "Is this what happens when someone dies in game?"

Even though his eyes were closed, he could see what was happening around him. A Pokemon that seemed to be made of darkness drifted near him. "Darkrai?" Helium called out, but the Pokemon had already left. Helium floated down further when a light appeared and Arceus was next to him. Arceus roared and Helium felt his falling reverse directions. He was being raised up and guided by the god of all Pokemon.

ooo

Helium felt soft grass under his body and heard several gasps near him. He opened his eyes to see a very enthusiastic Pichu jumping on him. "HELIUM!" Twilmer was jumping up and down. Helium smiled and patted her head, causing Twilmer to purr. "How?" Twilmer found herself asking that question a lot lately.

"Arceus guided me," Helium said, standing up and brushing himself off. Twilmer jumped onto his shoulder excitedly. Everyone seemed happy to meet him, including a gamer he had never seen before.

"But Arceus took Dream and Ontaro away," Twilmer frowned.

"That doesn't make him evil. Arceus can't help but to associate with the darkness as it is his complete opposite," Aura tried to offer an explanation.

"That made no frigging sense," Twilmer grumped.

"Well, maybe I can't put it into exact words, but I didn't hear you trying to come up with anything," Aura challenged, placing a hand on the hilt of her katana.

"You know, maybe I'll stick around a little while longer. This party certainly seems more fun then what I was doing for the top ten," Drix suggested.

Twilmer's ears perked up. First the legendary swordswoman, Aura, had joined her party. Now Drix was tagging along for a bit and he was a top ten member. Yes, this just kept getting better and better. "Yes! Welcome to the group!" Twilmer exclaimed. It was a bitter sweet victory though as Ontaro and Machop were no longer with them, but they would learn to move on. Twilmer was extremely ticked to discover that he had betrayed them, but he would get his just desserts soon enough. The group turned their heads as Max wondered over to the group and yawned.

"Oh," Emily23 said, blushing. Their group had completely forgotten about the pink little Pokemon.

ooo

This is the Lonepichu signing out 


	15. Extra 2 Heating Up the Hot Springs

Pokemon World Online

Extra 2: Part 15: Heating Up the Hot Springs

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, Drix, Aura, or the idea for this part. As the first extra was base don a dream by Aura, this is based on a dream by Drix. You know, why do all of my friends have dreams centering around helping Helium in their own odd ways? XD well, anyways, this part was a long time coming, and I promise part 16 will be back on plot.

This part is dedicated to Drix for his dreaming skillz

ooo

Considering the losses the party had just suffered, it was understandable that the party would take a well deserved break. Lucky for them, Fuwaru Town was right near an in-game hotsprings resort, being near the mountains. "I remember this place," Aura mused, taking in the simplicity and japanese styled buildings. "Sparia and I bathed here right after she had just evolved from Piplup to Prinplup," Aura smiled, stroking Sparia's blue down. Sparia cooed softly as Victoria watched. She looked over at Twilmer and wondered why she wasn't being stroked this minute. Her red head feathers were just as soft, if not softer then Sparia's. Her furr was also soft, but granted the fact that Twilmer barely came up to Victoria's elbows was probably the reason why not much affection had been shown, plus she always seemed to be hanging out with Helium. Victoria crossed her claws with a 'Wea' of disgust.

"I know the man who works this place. You guys are with an admin, so it shouldn't cost us anything," Twilmer jumped off of Helium's shoulder and began to strut up to the doors of the resort area.

"Only one problem, Miss Pichu," Drix used Emily23's pet name for Twilmer and Emily23 wasn't to thrilled at this matter.

"Don't you start calling me that," Twilmer warned, cheeks sparking, "but what's the problem?"

"Miss Pichu, you're a pichu, for crying out loud. I don't think the owner will take kindly to a talking Pichu, even if you are someone he knows." Drix used his boot to block Twilmer's sudden tackle attack. He managed to hold back a giggle at the tiny admin because of a glare from Aura.

"You are so unsenstive, you know that?" Aura scolded, though she didn't look very mad. "Come on, I'll pay," Aura offered, which was rare for her, but she was feeling unusually genrous after the ordeal they had just survived.

"You'll pay? Why this is something new," Drix smirked, earning a second death glare from the legendary double blader.

Aura ignored him as she made her way over to the counter. Twilmer was slightly miffed at the situation, but that faded away when they got their hotsprings passes and headed to their respective springs. Drix and Helium as well as Max entered the male's side while Gloom basked in the sunlight on dry land. Divided but rocks high enough so that they couldn't be seen, the girls entered their side. Sparia was rather weary at entering the hot waters, but once she was in, she relaxed considerably. Victoria, unfortunately, had to sit this one out as she was an ice type and the warm water didn't agree with her. She scowled, sitting in the shade and cursing in pokemon laguage under her breath. Bunneary looked cautious as well with the water as once she was wet, it was so hard to dry the ruffled fur that covered the lower part of her body and tips of her ears.

Twilmer hung onto Aura's shoulder as her little body wasn't exactly built to swim. Aura didn't mind to much. Emily23 kept swimming around in circles, which annoyed Aura.

"Hey, Drix," Helium said softly to the top ten member and feirce swordsman. He said it quietly and a slight blush appeared on his boyish face.

"Oh god, please don't tell me you're gay," Drix rolled his eyes.

"What! No! Of course I'm not!" Helium's blush deepened.

"Keep it down over there or I'll make you keep it down!" Came Aura's disgruntled voice over the wall.

"Best not to disturb her highness," Drix smirked and waded over to sit beside Helium. "What's eating you?" Drix asked.

"Well, can you keep a secret?" Helium asked sincerly.

"Well," Drix could've gone with the truth which was 'depends on how juicy it is' but he decided to omit that tidbit of inofrmtaion and see where this went, "of course."

"You see, I really like Twilmer," was as far as Helium got before Drix fell over. He stood up, trying to hold back laughter. This gay wannabe was in love with the fluffy, Pichu admin? That was rich.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, but I wasn't expecting that," Drix apologized, holding back more laughter. Helium seemed to not mind, which irritated Drix. It was as if this kid could never get angry. Drix walked back over to Helium and sat down beside him, taking a few deep breaths. "So, you like the admin?"

"Yeah, and I talked to Aura about this, but she was more concerned with giving me a lesson on how to kiss her if the time should ever arise," Helium explained.

This made Drix raise his eyebrow. A kissing lesson? "Did she kiss you?" Drix asked, showing mild interest.

"No," Helium answered, looking at Drix weirdly. Drix merely shrugged. "I'm sure you've liked girls before, how did you tell them?"

"You've had a girlfriend before, right?" Drix asked, looking down at Helium, who was really skinny for a boy his age, though he was slightly toned, however Drix's character had more muscles then three Heliums combined.

"Yeah, but she asked me out, and we only went out three times before she got bored with me," Helium sighed, slipping down into the hot water so that everything below his nose was submersed in the warm water.

"Oh," Drix puzzled over this for a bit, enjoying the feeling of his aches washing away. "Well, I vaguely know the admin. I've heard about her and I know about her from what Aura had mailed me, but based on what I've seen so far, she seems like the stuck up type. Then again, she also seems to have her head stuck up her a and seems to hero-worship PWO's head honchos and his group of seven. Though, if what Aura assumes is true, then it's all a front."

"So what do I do?" Helium asked.

His questions were really getting on Drix's last nerves. "Just tell her. If you like her, then the way will come to you. H, the ideal PWO-related way to ask someone out for me is a fight and a kiss afterwards. Only you know your mojo." Drix looked up, watching his Salamance fly through the sky. A smile played on his lips as he watched the majestic being flip and turn.

"When should I tell her?" Helium asked, standing up. Drix had had it up to here with Helium. Suddenly an evil idea crossed his mind.

"How about, right now?" Drix asked with an evil grin.

"Huh?" Helium began to say, but was shocked as Drix picked him up and hurled him over the rocks into the girls section of the hotspring. Girlish screams and a high-pitched 'Pichu' were heard.

"You pervert!" Aura shouted, grabbing her katanas from the edge of the hotspring and began to chase the poor boy around the spring, not taking notice to if her towel stayed on or not. Emily23 tried to hide behind her Bunneary, who was blushing and covering her eyes with her ears. Twilmer just looked plain ticked off, with a hint of amusement. A shock from her stopped everyone in their tracks, but also shocked the two girls as well. "Drix," Aura hissed, "this is your fault!" she shouted. His laughter ringing from over the rocks was her answer. "D you to H" Aura shouted, PWO's censor having a heyday on her.

Twilmer climbed up over the rocks to see Aura chasing Drix, who was laughing to hard to dodge a direct blow from her katanas. "Do that again and I'll make sure they peirce your heart," Aura warned with a hiss.

"And this is why we don't go anywhere nice together," Twilmer sighed.

ooo

End Part 15


	16. Jungle Fever

Pokemon World Online

Part 16: Jungle Fever

Disclaimer: I don't own Drix, Aura, household cleaners, pokemon, or the song Jungle Fever XD which does not appear in this fic, but I did use the title... Anyways, part 16 is up, and a thanks to Moya for helping me with a part I was having trouble on. Also thanks to drix, who is the one who got me off my lazy butt to type.

Dedication: I dedicate this part to Ri2 because I always look forward to their reviews. They are always the most fun to read so this part is for you.

ooo

After having witnessed Dream's acts and Ontaro's betrayal, Twilmer and her party had decided that it would be better to skip Fuwaru town and cut through the jungle beside it, which was the quicker route to the higher level areas and Firewall Mountain. Now that Twilmer had two high level gamers with her, she didn't worry about taking the slow route through areas that could provide many level up oppertunities. Emily23 and Helium would catch up eventually, or they would trail behind. This thought didn't please Twilmer, but she had no choice. This glitch had to be eradicated and the nature of it discovered before it disrupted the enitre system.

The problem with the jungle was that it was very humid and while Helium's Gloom was enjoying the current atmosphere very much, Victoria was lagging due to being part ice type, Sparia wasn't at her best stength due to being a penguin, even if she wasn't an ice type (hot locations were not her forte), and Emily23 was getting receiving a bad hair day, which was perhaps the greatest down side to traveling through the jungle of all. "Look at my hair! My Bunneary ears don't even stand up as well as they usually do in this humidity. It'll take me hours to straighten this mess out," she complained hwile looking at herself in a Wobbuffett Mirrorcoat mirror.

"Stop complaining! At least you have hair," Twilmer complained. Though she had little room to talk as her yellow furr, which was usually fluffy, was becoming matted down and slightly damp.

Aura then began to laugh, "You see, this is why I don't let my hair grow out. Long hair just gets in the way in situations like this," Aura laughed with a smirk, running a hand through her short, raven hair.

"Can it," Drix muttered. He didn't like the humdity either, but he wasn't about to let that show.

"Make me," Aura said dangerously, but with a playful smile, hands on her katanas.

"Oh I'd be glad to," Drix grinned, pulling out his sword.

"Uh, guys, we have ground to cover," Twilmer pointed out, motioning towards the wide expanse of jungle. The jungle may have been the quickest route, but it was still a long way to get out of the area they were now in.

"Don't worry, I can make this quick," Aura shouted before lunging forward and lashing out with both katanas, striking the place where Drix's chest had been seconds before.

"You little b-" Drix cursed, side rolling, then striking feircely.

"They do that all the time, but it always ends in a tie," Sparia commented. Twilmer started, surprised that she could perfectly understand the Empoleon. She had noticed recently that pokemon was becoming more understandable to her, but it had never hit her before this moment. Pokemon, though, wasn't actual words, it was more feelings and tones in order to get a point across, and other pokemon were more intune to nature and these feelings, so they could understand what was being conveyed as if spoken in actual words.

"Calm down, Twilmer," Twilmer told herself. She had become frightened that perhaps the glitch was overcoming her for a second, but the fact that she could still talk and use items meant nothing of the sort had yet happened. Yet...did that mean it could? Twilmer was a little bundle of nerves as she pondered over this unpleasant thought.

Meanwhile, Drix and Aura exchanged blows, sword and katana clinging loudly as they struck one another. Twilmer tapped her foot impatiently and watched as Aura dodged one of Drix's blows. "We don't have time for this," she complained, gesticulating with her little paws, however her words fell on deaf ears.

After a semi-epic struggle, Aura and Drix felt the effects of the humidity as both were sweating profusely. It got to be to much as the two stopped, panting. "D- it, why do they always end in a tie?" Aura asked, more to herself then anyone else, frustratedly. She turned her back to the group and walked ahead silently.

"I take it that this has happened before," Helium commented to Drix in a whisper so the swordswoman would not hear him.

"The first time we met, we fought and I won, being of a higher level then her. She, however, never allowed herself to accept that defeat. Everytime we meet, we pretty much begin with a battle. Ever since that first fight, they have always ended in a tie. I think it's her main goal to defeat me," Drix smirked somewhat cockily.

"That sounds like me and Elra," Twilmer commented, riding on Helium's shoulder.

"No, Aura and I tie; you are always defeated by Elra," Drix said, taking slight pleasure in the dirty look Twilmer was giving him. She, however, remained silent because there was bitter truth to his words. Drix was not one to sugar coat things.

The group continued their path through the jungle with difficulty as the rough underbrush raked against their legs. Emily23, the only one of the group not wearing pants, was holding back gasps of pain. Unable to take the pain anymore, she hastily did a costume change back into her full-body Bunneary suit for the time being. "About time, I was tired of seeing you in that skanky outfit," Twilmer remarked. Emily23 chose not to resond.

"I think we're lost," Helium finally spoke up after about thirty minutes of heavy traveling.

"Much as I hate to admit it, I think you're right," Drix admitted. Aura still hadn't turned to face them. She had been, after all (though unintentionally) leading them. She knew no one was blaming her, but she still felt that the blame fell upon her.

"It's times like this that I wish that traitor and backstabber, Ontaro, was still on the party," Twilmer sighed, remembering how Ontaro checked his map religously every five minutes.

"Maybe if we had appreciated him more, he wouldn't have betrayed us," Emily23 suggested, crossing her arms and sighing, Bunneary doing the same. Suddenly, out of no where, a Staraptor dived down into the clearing and grabbed Bunneary in it's talons. "Bunneary!" Emily23 shouted, running after the Staraptor as it flew away. Thr entire party followed behind her, though running was extremely difficult in the humid jungle. The Staraptor wasn't having an easy time flying through the trees either, which Twilmer found odd as Staraptor weren't programmed to fly through forests or jungles, but rather above them. Was this a glitch?

"Wait a second," Twilmer jumped off of Helium's shoulder and onto Aura's. Aura was near the front and much taller than the herbalist. Twilmer released a spark attack, which hit the Staraptor, but also hurt Bunneary. Unfortunately, the attack wasn't strong enough to do much damage.

"Twilmer, watch the attack," Emily23 warned.

"It seems you still have some work to do on your Pichu related attacks," Aura commented as they ran, slightly miffed that a pudgy Pichu had just landed on her shoulder.

"I guess so," Twilmer admitted with a shrug. The Staraptor turned abruptly and let out an ear-peircing screech. It sounded exactly like a real life raptor. Twilmer nodded, impressed at the graphics team for their work in this area, but still, something seemed off with the Staraptor. Could what Dream had said about pokemon becoming real be true? Twilmer pushed aside this thought with a snort. As if a no talent mediocre hacker like her could ever meddle with the intricate system that ran PWO.

They continued their chase, however the Staraptor was soon out of sight. "Bunneary," Emily23 began to cry softly as she fell to her knees.

"Hey, kid, do you have a tracker on your Bunneary?" Drix asked.

"What's that?" she asked, sniffling.

"It's something you can ask a moderator or admin to place in your pokemon's programming when you first register them as your partner. I have one in my Salamance, which is how I keep track of where he is." Drix looked up, knowing his faithful partner was above him, making sure nothing happened that could endanger Drix.

"Oh, yeah!" Emily23 jumped up excitedly, but then she sank back down. "I don't know how to use it," she mumbled

"Argh! How dense can you get?" Aura slapped her forehead in great annoyment. "You look on your map and the blinking red light is your pokemon." Aura couldn't see how Twilmer had let such n00bish members on her party with such a great task as she had, but then again she supposed that no one really wanted to help the admin, judging that she had only found three gamers to help her when Aura had been sent to help and one of those was a traitor. She could only imagine how frustrated the admin must be.

"Let's see," Emily23 opened up her map screen and began to search the area around the flashing yellow dot, which marked her location. "WHAT!?" she shouted.

"What is it now?" Twilmer grumped.

"The red dot isn't on her anywhere!" she screamed, tears coming to her eyes. Twilmer was amazed at how fast her mood could changed. Perhaps if she had been more girly and less of a tomboy, then perhaps she could have mood changes like that, too. Wait, what was she thinking. Twilmer shook her head, deciding the humidity of the jungle was playing with her brain.

"Let me check my map. There may be a glitch with yours," Helium pulled his map out to a dirty look from Twilmer for his glitch comment. "Gloom is right next to me so...Whoa! It's not just you. Gloom doesn't appear on my map either."

"Let me try," Twilmer said, deciding her word would be the end-all. Victoria was looking at her from next to Aura. Since Twilmer was the party leader, all the members and their pokemon would appear on her map. She saw the various colored dots for the party (she smirked to herslef as she had made Helium's dot pink) but the pokemon weren't on the map. Victoria wasn't and neither was any of the others, let alone Bunneary. "There must be a glitch in the system with the pokemon locators. I'll have to PWO mail PWO Corp about this later."

"Well, how are we supposed to find my Bunneary now?" Emily23 asked, her voice frantic.

"Gloom!" Helium stated.

"Gloom?" Twilmer, Aura, and Drix said in unison with equal levels of humor in their voices. Aura raised an eyebrow and Drix snorted. Emily23 merely looked up, desperate enough to try anything.

"Gloom helps me find the plants and herbs I'm looking for with his sense of smell. I'm sure we could use Gloom similar to the way people use dogs to track people." Helium looked around the group, waiting for a response.

"Uhh..." Twilmer simply stared at him.

"I'm desperate! I'll try anything," Emily23 really was desperate and her eyes were red and puffy from all the crying she had done.

"Okay, so do you have anything with Bunneary's sent on it." Helium looked at the girl clad in a Bunneary suit and shook his head. "Never mind, I'll just have Gloom sniff you. You and your Bunneary probably have each other's scents on you two, so that should make things easier."

Gloom approached Emily23 and took a deep breath. He then choked a bit and sniffed the air. Gloom stood dumb founded for a few seconds before stumbling off to the east. "Oh THIS was a brilliant plan," Aura mumbled to Drix who shook his head in agreement.

The group followed behind Gloom, who made his way precariously through the jungle. Following Gloom seemed to be like following a small child that constantly forgot what he was following and seemed to be in no rush. Gloom would ofton stop to smell a flower and then lose the scent, so he'd have to resmell Emily23. The thought of smelling Emily23 made Twilmer want to gag. Finally they reached a point wher eGloom stopped and looked up. Twilmer was just glad to stop, as was the rest of the party who were hot and sweaty from running through the jungle.

"There, up in that tree," Helium pointed. The group looked up to see Bunneary asleep in a tree with Staraptor curled around it. That seemed odd to Twilmer as well, but she figured the jungle area must be going through an upgrade in pokemon personality.

"I'll handle this," Twilmer said with a grin, releasing a spark attack before anyone could stop her. This time she managed to miss Bunneary, but the attack wasn't powerful enough to really damage the Staraptor. It woke with a start and let out an angry, ear-peircing shriek. It then swooped to attack, knocking Twilme rinto a tree.

"Wea!" Victoria shouted, running over to her fallen partner.

"I'll handle this," Helium said, gaining confidence in himself as his Gloom had managed to find the Bunneary. "Gloom, stun spore!" he shouted. Gloom complied, shooting a powerful dust at the Staraptor, who became paralyzed. It hit a nearby tree as it crashed to the ground, having been hit in mid-flight, and an item chest fell out. It opened as it fell to the ground and a leaf stone flew out, landing on Gloom. Gloom began to glow and change shape. Helium's eyes grew wide as his partner evolved into a Vileplume before his eyes.

"Vileplume," Helium smiled, looking proudly upon his partner. Vileplume smiled back and looked determindly at Staraptor. Vileplume began a petal dance attack and Helium combined with one of his powders that caused skin irritation. The Staraptor, finally able to move and not liking the abuse, flew off with one last shreik.

"I did it," Helium looked surprised, blinking as he looked up in the tree. Bunneary had slept through the whole thing and stretched as she woke up.

"Bunneary!" Emily23 cried. Bunneary smiled and jumped into the arms of her partner.

"Not bad, flower child," Twilmer congradulated, making Helium turn a shade of pink that matched his robe. Twilmer smirked at this and was glad her own cheeks were already pink so no one could tell if she were blushing or not.

"Alrighty, now that we've finished that annoying little side quest, lets hurry up and ge tout of this jungle," Aura stated, snaping the group back into reality. Victoria and Sparia readily agreed since the humidity was not kind on eithe rone of them, however Vileplume seemed to love it. Aura smiled to herself as the group continued along. Perhaps those two weren't the n00bs she thought they were.

End part 16

---

FInally finished that part mainly so Drix will stop bugging me to finish it. Part 17, I will try to make it come faster than this one did.


	17. Real Life Online

Demetrius kicked the soccer ball around the feild half-heartedly. He tried to kick it towards the goal, but he hit the rim of the goal and the ball bounced back towards him. He picked it up and tried to spin it on his finger like a basketball player. He dropped the ball and went to kick it again, but stopped before his foot met the abll. He sighed and picked the ball up, observing the many hexagons on the ball. He sighed and started to walk back to his dorm. It was no use; his mind was miles away from soccer. He hadn't been to hardly any of the practices and he knew if it weren't for the fact that he was one of the only good players on the team, the coach would've kicked him off by now. He just couldn't get his head in the game. He entered his dorm building and decided against going into his room just yet. His friends had not exactly been kind towards his new apathetic attitude. As understanding as Demetrius was, sometimes he just got sick and tired of dealing with crap like that.

He plopped onto one of the couches and began to watch the news, since it was what wa son the TV at the moment. Last time he fiddled with the channels, he broke the knob off of the TV (the romote had been lost a long time ago) which is why they TV was stuck on the news channel until someone fixed it. He wasn't really paying attention to the TV until he heard something that caught his ear. He sat up and glance dat the screen, then gasped when he recognized it as a screen cap of the online Pokemon game he was into and even more surprising, the cap was of Twilmer!

"That's right, the beloved online game has become infested with glitches. One of the larger glitches has turned Admin Twila Ramirez into a creature known as a Pichu. While it is unknown what caused this, the fact that this game uses the most advanced computer system in the world is cause for concern. It appears this glitch has Twila unable to log off," at this, Demetrius made a noise. Yeah, THAT'S what was preventing her from logging off. He rolled his eyes at how the news programs really had no idea what was going on. "Other glitches have been confirmed and it seems as if it's causing some problems for the managers of the system. As this same technology is being adopted and adapted by the government, they are concerned that the same glitches will affect that technology. We'll have more on this situation later. In other news..." Demetrius turned the TV off and got up. He had to tell Twilmer.

When he got to his room, Jason and Ben looked over at him. "What?" he asked with a shrug.

"Where have you been?" Jason asked with scowl.

"Practicing for the game on Saturday," Demetrius answered half turthfully.

"Oh, alright then," Jason said and went back to being his old Cassonova self. "So Ben, did you score using the moves I taught you?"

"Ben, did you join the team?" Demetrius asked, disbelief apparent in his voice.

"If you ever came to practices, you would know." Jason shook his head. "No, I'm talking about Ben scoring with his new girlfriend. That was awesome my friend!" Jason high-fived Ben who looked quite pleased with himself. "Ah, smell you two later. I have to go see a woman about a pizza." With a wave, Jason disappeared out of the door.

"Don't even start with me, Demetrius," Ben glared at him.

Demetrius simply sighed and flopped onto his bed. "I wasn't going to. It's your decision. I won't high-five you over it, but I'm not going to say anything." After all, what could he say?

"Really?" Ben looked over at him surprised and then shrank back. "Can you keep a secret?" He asked.

"I can. Let me guess, you didn't really do it." Demetrius looked over at Ben with a knowing look.

"How'd you know?" Ben asked with wide eyes.

"Ben, you're one of my best friends and you have to ask how I know you?" Demetrisu smiled out of relief and then sat up when he remembered what he came up here for. "Where's my lap top?" Demetrius asked, looking around when he noticed it wasn't on his desk where he left it.

"Oh that...umm...I took it to the library since mine is in the shop, however I left it there and they closed it early today since the librarian had a family emergency. You can use mine."

"Yours doesn't have Pokémon World Online uploaded onto it and that could take hours," Demetrius groaned.

"The support staff should all have their numbers on the main site if you want to call that girl you've been harping over," Ben suggested.

"You're right!" Demetrius quickly accessed the site on Ben's laptop and found Twilmer under the support staff. Then he felt a fluttering in his chest. "I can't call her."

"Yes you can! I've seen you make impossible shots on the field. Calling some girl can't be as hard as that." Ben was right. Demetrius thanked him and went outside, dialing the number on his cell phone.

ooo

Pokémon World Online

Part 17: Real Life Online

Disclaimer: I do not own anything except my characters. Yada yada, blah blah. Anyways, had a weird idea for this part after I saw something about World of War craft on the news. PWO is supposed to be a famous online game, so why shouldn't it be on the news? So yeah...anyways...on with the show!

And a warning, (glaaaares at Drix) I've been listening to the theme from Zero no Tsukaima "First Kiss" waaay too much whilst writing this, so…yeah…blame the real Drix for this.

ooo

Twilmer lugged along, using Quick Attack occasionally to keep up with the group. Her main form of transportation hadn't logged on today, so she was left trudging along. She refused to ride on Emily23's shoulder and didn't dare ask Drix or Aura for a ride. Victoria loved her partner, but she really didn't want to lug her around everywhere. Twilmer figured that it was time for her to learn to use her Pichu body as it appeared she wouldn't be rid of it any time soon.

"I wonder where Helium is," Emily23 wondered aloud. She had changed back into her other Bunneary outfit and Twilmer was far from approving, but she kept her mouth shut.

"He's probably got real life to attend to," Aura shrugged.

"Unlike a certain admin," Drix added.

"What did you say?" Twilmer used agility to get right in front of him, cheeks sparking dangerously.

"Knock it off you two," Aura said. She was very annoyed with the proceedings and was still irked at Drix for tying with her again.

A loud ringing suddenly sounded from Twilmer. Emily23 jumped and Aura drew her twin katanas faster than the eye could see. Drix merely looked confused. "Sorry, that must be my phone. Geoffrey should have it up to me in no time." Twilmer removed the microphone from her mouth and looked over at Geoffrey, who was entering the door. She had been walking on the treadmill in her room to make the game seem more realistic and stepped off as Geoffrey handed her the phone. "Hello?"

"Hi, um, is this Twilmer…I mean Twila?" A familiar voice met Twila's ears.

"Helium?" Twila was surprised to hear her party member calling her and was also a bit flattered. She felt her cheeks becoming stained red and felt her voice temporarily leave. Talking to someone on the computer was one thing, but talking to them on the phone was something completely different. "You don't have to call when you're not going to be on, you know. We can manage well enough without a simple herbalist."

That was the Twilmer Demetrius knew. "Um, I just wanted to call to ask if you had seen the news. By the way, you can call me Demetrius if you want since we aren't, you know, online currently." Demetrius sounded as nervous as Twila was. She hadn't felt this way in such a long time.

"Oh, okay then." Twila mentally kicked herself. Why was she being so self conscious? This was the same person that she used as transportation daily. "No, Demetrius, I have not seen the news. I gave up on the current status of the world when I stopped actually caring about it."

"Well," Demetrius found it easier to talk to Twila not that she was acting like the feisty, self-centered girl he knew and loved. Loved? Demetrius blushed and cleared his throat, "There was a news report on the numerous glitches in PWO. They also mentioned that the glitch has you unable to log out."

"What? Did they mention me by name?" Twila asked, surprised.

"Yeah, and that's not the half of it. I assume that since they mentioned this on TV, then the glitches must be getting pretty serious."

"PWO Corp has mentioned anything to the admins that I am aware of and nothing has been posted to the players. This can't be good. Why would they keep something like this secret?" Twila pondered this fact. Why would they keep this from their top admin; the admin that was involved in the biggest glitch investigation.

"This also had me thinking of how Ken Sugimori attacked us. Didn't you saw that he was one of Satoshi's top ten?"

"Yeah, he is. I just figured it was a hack or something. This is really weird." Twilmer furrowed her brows. "Then we've got to double our efforts. I want us to get to Mount Firewall as soon as possible. It shouldn't take that long if we use some short cuts…" Twilmer trailed off, surprised at her line of thinking.

"You don't mean hacking, do you?" Demetrius sounded shocked. Twilmer, who was about as big a supporter of PWO as there could be was, talking of hacking?

"Of course not. Well, I suppose that's where my thoughts were headed, but I know my way around. I may not be much of a grace master at the moment, but that doesn't mean I don't know my way around."

"Of course it doesn't. I won't be able to get online today because my roommate is a forgetful moron, but I'll be on call if you need me."

"Well, okay. Umm, you know that you don't have to just call me about games. You can call me any time." What was she saying? "I mean I'm pretty busy being an admin and all, so I'd probably not have time for your call, but you know, if you want. Thanks for the info."

Demetrius caught the meaning and smiled. "You're welcome. Bye."

"Bye," Twila pushed the button that hung up the phone, her face still red, "Please take this back for me, Geoffrey." She handed the phone to her butler, who had been waiting patiently for her to finish the call. He bowed before leaving the room. Twila fixed the microphone back on her face.

Ooo

"I'm back, guys." Twilmer looked up at her party.

"What was that all about?" Drix asked, running a hand through his purple hair.

"That was Deme-I mean Helium. There was a bit on the news about the PWO glitches…and about me." Twilmer looked up at the three of them.

"Oh, Miss Pichu and Helium are in love!" Emily23 gushed girlishly. She clasped her hands in front of her and a dreamy look crossed her face.

"WHAT?!" An unmistakable crossed Twilmer's pink cheeks making them turn many shades darker. Sparks flew agitatedly from them.

"Oh, so was that your daily phone sex call or something?" Drix smirked. Twilmer let him know just how much she didn't appreciate that comment by letting loose a flurry of spark attacks on the warrior. "You little b" Drix pulled his sword out and pointed it at the little admin, who just looked up at him furiously and did not back down one inch.

"Break it up you two! Twilmer's love life is her own business." Aura glared at the two of them. Drix put his sword back into his sheath and was about to say a snide remark, however a glare from Aura told him to keep his mouth shut.

"Anyways," Twilmer cleared her throat and regained her composure, "we need to double our pace. If the glitch is on the news, then this can't be good."

"Hmm, it seems things are moving along faster than we first thought. What are we supposed to do now?" Aura asked, looking at Twilmer.

"Well, I was going to suggest going to Firewall Mountain, but now that I think about it, it'd probably be best to go to PWO Corp and get some information first. Then Firewall is only a little ways away. We can probably get to PWO Corp by the end of the day if we hurry. We've actually been keeping a good pace," Twilmer remarked. With that, the group took off at a run. Twilmer was surprised that she was able to keep up, using agility whenever she fell behind. Being a Pichu wasn't so bad. Well, it was, but there were worse things she could've turned into. For one, a Slowpoke. Luckily the Slowpoke that was with them would reappear whenever Emily23 logged back on so that they didn't worry about him falling behind.

They were able to reach PWO Corp headquarters at the end of the day, just as Twilmer had predicted. Twilmer looked up at her place of employment with a small grin on her face. This was the one place she felt she could call home. Twilmer had all the information concerning her mission with her, however if what Demetrius had said was correct, than new leads had evolved and they had not been given to her. She had never known PWO Corp to mistrust her before, so why would they start now? "Alright guys, we did very well. Everyone can log off for the night and then we can ask PWO Corp all the questions we'd like when they open in the morning." Twilmer commanded.

"Ladies first," Drix smirked at Twilmer, who glared at him.

"Then please, by all means, be my guest," Twilmer bowed low to Drix with an evil grin on her face. Aura and Victoria laughed as Drix scowled and logged out.

"See you tomorrow, Miss Pichu!" Emily23 logged out soon after leaving only Aura and Twilmer.

"What are you waiting for?" Twilmer asked.

"Twilmer, do you know why I left the top ten?" Aura asked suddenly. Twilmer looked up at her and shrugged. "PWO Corp isn't the almighty and good power you think they are. The people who run it are human. They may be persuaded to act irrationally just as other humans may be."

Twilmer simply looked up at Aura. "You don't know anything about PWO Corp. They are the best corporation in the world and they only work for the good of the players and mankind. I will not hear anyone insult their good name."

"And it's people like you that make me realize how mind-washing PWO Corp can be." With that, Aura signed out leaving a disgruntled Twilmer behind her.

OoO

Twila growled slightly as the phone rang. She had been busy shocking small Tailow to gain some cheap experience. She was surprised that her level could still rise as a Pichu. It seemed as if she had truly become a "real" Pokémon. "What?" Twila demanded as she picked up the phone.

"Oh, umm, is this a bad time?" Demetrius' voice met Twila's ears.

She relaxed slightly and cleared her throat. "No, I'm just irritated. I'm always irritated, so that's nothing new." Twila smiled as Demetrius laughed. "Anything wrong with the game?"

"No, I just called to, umm, you know, talk." Twila smiled and her night became a lot less lonely. For the first time in months, she didn't spend it alone finding ways to pass time in the virtual world.


	18. PWO Corp's Secret part 1

Eskarine heard the phone ring once again and decided not to answer it. She yawned as she finished dressing for the day and ran a hand through her short brown hair. Her white cashmere sweater was a bit much for summer weather, but she didn't plan on leaving the house today and found it suitable. She walked over to her dresser and picked up the simple gold band resting on a silver tray-an import from Peru. She turned it over and over, enjoying its cool, smooth surface under her fingertips. Last night she had the nightmare again, only this time it was Twilmer who was watching as Helium was hit. This role reversal scared her. The phone was ringing again and she continued to ignore it. Eskarine slipped the simple band onto her finger and admired it as the morning sun glinted off of its surface.

The answering machine turned on and Eskarine listened to the ranting of her manager only half interested, "Eskarine, that design you turned in is off the charts! I've never seen anything sell as fast as this one has. I'm sure if you look out of your window, you will see it everywhere. It's hotter than those Prada bags! Anyways, I'll have your cut of the money sent to you today and I'll let you have a small break before you're next design is due. A small break. Anyways, I better go now. Call me!" Eskarine rolled her eyes and strolled out of her bedroom. She passed the tapestry in the small hallway that connected her living room and bedroom. Egyptian, hand-woven, and one of a kind. The kind of decoration that Eskarine valued above all others.

She entered the kitchen and fixed herself an omelet. As it was frying, she started her computer up. After a few minutes, both the omelet and the computer were ready and Eskarine checked her email as she ate her meal with small, measured bites, savoring the spices and flavors she had added. Most of them were alerting her to new PWO mails she had received. She deleted those as well as a few spam messages and forward messages she hated. Out of the messages left, one caught her eye. It was from Drix though it wasn't a PWO mail and was addressed from late the night before. Mildly interested, she clicked on the message.

ooo

"Coffee, double sugar, dark," Twila commanded Geoffrey as he entered her room to bring her breakfast. She stared at the bacon and threw it out. Too fattening. She picked up the plum and nibbled at it. She rubbed her bloodshot eyes and yawned. She had been up until the wee hours of the morning talking to Demetrius and her body was regretting that decision. She could smell the coffee brewing downstairs, which slightly perked her up. She looked at the phone and half hoped that it would ring. She then froze. What was she thinking? Hadn't she learned her lesson last time? Why was she having these feelings again?

She set down her plum and closed her eyes. She had lost her appetite. She couldn't be...

ooo

Ralph was an early riser and was up by seven AM despite the fact that he hadn't gone to bed until nearly three AM. He didn't really need much sleep as he wasn't able to exert himself physically enough to tire him out. He carefully settled himself in his chair and retrieved his laptop, silently sipping the coffee his parents had brought over for him. Despite the fact that he was in his mid 20s, he was forced to live with his parents while he looked for an apartment that could comidate his special needs. He sighed as he accessed AOL. As he did so, he heard the familiar "You've Got Mail" as a new message appeared on his screen. It was from Eskarine. He smiled as he opened it.

ooo

Emily returned from the bathroom, wiping her mouth on the back of her hand. She grimaced at the horrid taste in her mouth and went to the kitchen to pour herself a glass of lemonade. she sipped it; however the acidic drink made her gag. She sighed and poured it down the drain as her mother came into the kitchen. "Emily, I can't believe you! That's the third time I've caught you pouring a perfectly decent drink down the drain. We're not made of money!" Her mother glared at her and Emily glared right back. "You're father is working overtime at the office tonight," she said absently to herself.

"That man's not my father," Emily whispered. Her mother didn't hear her, which Emily was thankful for.

"Anyways, I'm out to spend the day with some friends. I should be back around dinner time. Don't spend all day on the computer." Her mom left in an outfit that suggested that she wasn't meeting with the sewing circle. Emily merely shook her head and suppressed this memory as she grabbed a glass of water and went upstairs to turn the computer on.

ooo

Demetrius awoke on cloud nine. Everything just felt much brighter. He even forgot the arguments he and his friends had shared. Ben stretched in the bed opposite his and grinned as he saw Demetrius' star struck gaze. "I see someone has finally been hit with cupid's arrow." Ben grinned up at his friend.

Demetrius nodded and fought the urge to call Twila once more. She probably wasn't even awake yet. He looked up at the clock and noticed that the library should be open. "I'm going to go retrieve my laptop," he announced with a slight glare at Ben.

"Wait, Demetrius," Ben called. Demetrius looked back at him with his head cocked to the side. "I just wanted to say good luck."

"Thanks man," Demetrius smiled. He left the dorm and headed for the library, which was really close by. It was a beautiful day and he wouldn't have minded spending it outside reading the latest Misty Dew Romance novel, however Twilmer and the party were more important to him than a day of relaxation. He had spent yesterday reading the book Twilmer had suggested to him and the two had discussed it on the phone last night. Twila still held a rather large dislike for romance novels, but she had said that this one hadn't been as painful a read as she had predicted. The thin boy smiled, closing his eyes as a slight breeze ruffled his hair. He watched as butterflies drifted between buttercups and grinned.

A wayward bee suddenly flew past and he jumped, falling over. He grimaced as he landed on his knees. He tried to stand, however his knees burned. He looked down to see blood beginning to seep through the wounds on his legs. He muttered under his breath as he walked to the library. Hopefully his laptop had been turned into the 'lost and found' area behind the reception counter so that he wouldn't have to look for it. The librarian was also fond of him, which would probably make the trip even quicker if he was lucky. He walked past the library to the school store and picked up a box of band aids. He took two out and covered the cuts on his legs. This would make do for now until he could get his laptop.

He entered the library and walked right up to the counter. "Excuse me, Mrs. Endall, has anyone turned in a ThinkPad brand laptop?" he asked.

"Yours is the one with the floral skin, right?" Mrs. Endall asked, slightly amused.

"Yeah, that's the one!" Demetrius exclaimed, relieved that he wouldn't have to search the library.

"That laptop must be rather popular. That kid on the soccer team retrieved it. What's his name again? Anyways, I thought he had given it back to you." Mrs. Endall looked up at Demetrius over her horn rimmed glasses.

"Jason?" Demetrius looked puzzled.

"Yeah, that's the one. He said that some guy named said that a friend-I'm assuming that's you-had lost it, so he came to get it. He left a little while ago."

"Thanks for the info," Demetrius waved and started to run out, however his hurt knees stopped him from going far and he started to limp away.

"Hey, a new Misty Dew novel just came in, are you interested?" Mrs. Endall called after him.

"Not today, but thank you," he called back.

"He's not interested in the new novel? Perhaps he finally found himself a girlfriend," Mrs. Endall snorted at her joke and turned back to her work.

Demetrius limped outside and looked around. At the large fountain right outside the library, he noticed Jason sitting and smirking at him. "I was wondering when you'd notice me here." He stood up; Demetrius' laptop tucked firmly under one arm.

"Oh, umm, thanks for retrieving my laptop for me. Can I have it back?" Demetrius asked in his normal, calm voice despite the fact that he was really annoyed at the situation.

"That depends," Jason took Demetrius' laptop and casually held it over the water, "on whether or not you'll be using it anymore."

"Jason, what are you doing?" Demetrius calm voice broke and the anger began to show through.

"What does it look like I'm doing? Every day you get on this thing and the soccer team suffers. As much as I hate to admit it, we need you. Our first game is in a few days and if you're not there, we'll lose and if we lose, then the girls won't be there to give us our victory rewards, understand?"

"This isn't like you at all. You've never been this cruel before," Demetrius looked crossly up at his so called friend.

"I also like messing with your fruity little head, small as it is." Jason's smirk pierced through Demetrius' kind exterior. He ran forward and lashed out at Jason. Jason, in his surprise, dropped the laptop. Demetrius managed to grab the corner of it before it hit the water as he was right there and surprised himself at his reflexes. "What the hell is wrong with you?" Jason looked up at him.

"I'm sick of taking your crap. You've always teased me and badgered me, but you've never resorted to destroying my personal property before. How could you sink so low?" The quick movements Demetrius had made finally took their toll on his hurt knees as he stumbled.

Jason just looked down at where Demetrius was kneeling and sneered. "I will see you at the game." With that, Jason left Demetrius on the ground humiliated and furious.

ooo

Pokémon World Online

Part 18: PWO Corp's Secret

Disclaimer: I own Twilmer, Helium, Em, and the idea, but most of the other characters are owned by themselves or their creators. I definitely don't own Pokémon or this game would be a reality. Now it's time for plot, plot, plot. I hoped you enjoyed that loooong break from anything plot worthy I had going for the longest time. Interesting note, in the RPG this fic is loosely based on, Trellaine is my love interest in a way, though I use that term loosely and in this fic, he isn't. Why is he here? He initiates more than he probably realizes. Anyways, Trellaine belongs to Chas. And you will get your Helium/Twilmer, so don't worry, he won't intrude on that. Drix also isn't getting much IRL time now because it's a plot point. Yep. I dun wanna reveal too much, so I'm being secretive. And I don't own AOL or ThinkPad (tis my laptop brand).

Demetrius gets more IRL time because he's special. This part is dedicated to Moya, owner of Ira, for spoiling me :3

ooo

Twilmer was surprised to find Aura and Drix in deep conversation when she arrived at the spot they had agreed to meet the night before. Twilmer was surprised to see Salamance there as well. She was resting next to Drix. Sparia was behind the two doing stretching exercises. Emily23 was also there, grooming Max with a soft bristled brush. Her Bunneary was helping with her own small brush. Max seemed quite content, yawning. "You guys are up early. usually I have to wait around for you guys for hours." She then looked around and noticed that the group was minus one pink robe-clad young man. "Where's Helium?"

Drix looked up at the yellow, furry admin and shrugged. "It seems his lover should know where he is."

"I am NOT his lover," Twilmer glared at Drix and dared him to say more. Victoria, meanwhile, walked over to Sparia, examining the techniques she was using and attempted to emulate her without her knowing. Sparia simply ignored the Weavile.

"Whatever," Drix reached over and patted his Salamance on the head. "Anyways, I'm afraid I won't be able to join everyone today. I have some business to take care of somewhere else. I'll probably be able to catch up with everyone when you get done taking care of business."

"What? Our party's going to be down one. I really wanted to show Satoshi what a capable, and I use that term lightly, party I had gathered," Twilmer said slightly disappointed.

"Our party's not going to be down one. I managed to find an old friend who was willing to come with us to fill in for Drix." Aura explained. As soon as the words were out of her mouth, a portal opened next to her and a mage bearing an orange and his Haunter stepped out.

"Orange anyone?" he offered.

"Trellaine? I haven't seen you in ages!" Twilmer grinned and ran over to the heavily robed mage.

"Twilmer, I'd say you have grown, but that seems rather inappropriate at the time." He pulled out another orange and tossed it to Haunter, who began juggling them. Emily23 laughed from where she was grooming Max.

"Humorous as always, I see," Twilmer said mildly irritated, "but you're not into hacking anymore, right?"

"Why Twilmer, I am shocked at your accusations. I never hacked, I merely changed some coding for the better," he laughed good-naturedly.

Twilmer shook her head. "Trellaine used to be one of our lead programmers, so he'd probably be more valuable than Drix at any rate."

Drix turned, loosening the sword in his sheath, and glared at Twilmer who smirked at him. "What's that supposed to mean? And what do you mean 'was'?"

"I finished the main frame and there wasn't much left to do. I made some modifications-"

"Hacked," Twilmer interrupted.

"-modifications as I went, which led me to come into a rough spot with Twilmer. She grew to love me, though, as does everyone," Trellaine continued, unphased by Twilmer's interruption.

"Whatever, I'm out." With that, Drix climbed on Salamance's back and flew off into the early morning mist.

"If he wasn't a top ten member, I would so kick him out of the party," Twilmer mumbled under her breath. This statement made Aura very angry, but she kept silent.

Emily23 finished grooming Max and put the grooming brushes back into her inventory. "Hi, I'm Emily23!" she introduced, calmer than Twilmer would have expected.

"Hello there, orange?" Trellaine offered. Emily23 took it excitedly and began working on taking the peel off. Trellaine smiled and watched as his Haunter floated around his head. Trellaine was a pretty laid back mage and loved to laugh heartily when the situation arose. He didn't force jokes, which Twilmer greatly appreciated, though she wasn't overly fond of the mage. She did respect him, though, which was perhaps an even greater honor.

"Where's Helium?" Twilmer asked, almost using his real name. "He should have been here by now. He said he was getting his laptop back early this morning on the phone last night. Well, whatever is keeping him, he better hurry up or else we'll have to leave him behind. I plan on finishing this mission as quickly as possible."

Aura looked over at Twilmer. "You talked to him all last night?"

"Not all of it, just until around three AM," Twilmer answered matter-of-factly.

"Ah, have you gotten over your old fear of commitment? I always knew you were destined to get a new boyfriend," Trellaine said jovially. Twilmer shot him a death glare, or as much of one that a Pichu was capable of giving.

"He is not my boyfriend. I promised myself I wouldn't let that happen again," Twilmer spat out, which didn't faze Trellaine in the least. He was used to dealing with the admin's temper from the few times they had met before.

"But you love him, don't you Miss Pichu?" Emily23 asked, bouncing up and down like a rabid fan girl.

"What?" Twilmer turned to face her, cheeks sparking. "What gives you that idea?" However, Twilmer never got to find out the answer to this as Helium appeared before them, Vileplume at his side. "Hey, Helium!" Twilmer greeted, a little too enthusiastically as the others noted.

"Hi." Helium replied shortly, making Twilmer stop short. She took a step back and scowled. "Are we ready for this mission?" Aura looked from Twilmer to Helium and shook her head.

"Yes, we were just waiting on your late arse. Anyways, come on, we're burning daylight." Twilmer turned and lead the group. An uncomfortable silence hung in the air only broken by the sound of their footsteps. They reached PWO corp. and entered the doors. Aura was a little wary of coming back to the headquarters as the top ten normally made visits daily to the building and many of the top ten she would rather not see at the moment. She kept close ties to them, but she couldn't shake off the odd feeling that made her uneasy about the whole mission. She looked down at Twilmer, who seemed to be cheering up, being in her old place of employment, and shook her head. Stupid feelings. It was just because it was nearing the anniversary of...

Aura snapped out of her thoughts as they reached the reception counter. "I'm here to see the council that placed me in charge of this glitch mission. I would like some more information on what is truly going on," Twilmer reported to the tiny man behind the desk. He had a dagger strapped to his side and wore a simple suit.

"Alright, Twilmer. Are you doing okay?" he asked, not having seen Twilmer since she set out on her mission several weeks ago.

"More or less, Akagi. As you can see, I managed to put a pretty decent party together. I have Aura and a top ten member in my party, which I would say isn't bad." Twilmer smiled in a way that mirrored the prestigious position she held within PWO.

"A top ten member and Aura, eh? Not bad. Anyways, your meeting is on floor 14. There should already be some suits there waiting for you." Akagi typed at the computer in front of him and nodded. "Yep, some of Mr. Tajiri's top suits. They appear to have the info you're looking for. Good luck!" Akagi waved to Twilmer as she and her party boarded the elevator next to the reception desk.

"Floors fourteen through twenty are only used for serious meetings. There must be a huge break through," Twilmer said more to herself than any of her party members. Helium stared straight ahead, lost in his thoughts, as Aura shifted uncomfortably, unable to shake off the feeling that something bad was about to happen. They reached floor fourteen and stepped out of the elevator. Trellaine held his guide-a long pole topped with an orb to help with the concentration of magic attacks- tightly as if he too sensed danger. Emily23 stuck close to the group, looking around nervously; Bunneary and Max right behind her. Helium walked forward with no emotion on his face. Aura had unlocked her katanas with a swift motion that went undetected. Twilmer walked forward with dignity and a sense of great awe.

Upon entering the room, Twilmer was quite surprised to find only two suits chatting casually with their backs turned to the door. There was no grand meeting and no files or any items as far as she could see. What was going on? Twilmer cleared her throat and the suits turned. "We're here for the information meeting I requested."

"Ah yes, Twilmer. We have much information to share with you. It seems your unusual log in schedule has made the news lately," one of the suits commented.

"Yeah, and?" Twilmer tapped her small foot impatiently. The suits stood, walking over to her. Aura moved in front of Twilmer faster than a high level grace master and pulled out her katanas as the suits fired concealed weapons at her. Aura easily deflected them with her twin katanas. "What the hell?" Twilmer cursed, shocked at her words. Aura must have been rubbing off on her. then again, why wasn't her cuss word censored. More importantly, why had the suits just fired on her?

"You're giving PWO bad publicity," the other suit replied matter-of-factly.

"You two should be fired. I'm going to Satoshi about this!" Twilmer turned, however two more suits appeared behind her. Helium pulled out a powder and threw it forward, causing the suits to fall. Footsteps could be heard in the hallway as more were approaching.

"Run!" Trellaine ordered as a look of intense concentration crossed his face. He created a barrier around them and they ran out of the door where many suits were waiting, all armed.

"I need to get to Satoshi. Something is wrong here," Twilmer looked around dumbfounded.

"We'll take care of the suits. Just run to the elevator!" Aura commanded. Twilmer nodded, obeying without hesitation, and ran onto the elevator, using agility to keep her one step ahead of the bullets. Despite this, one still grazed her shoulder causing a burning pain. Behind her Victoria was running along, slashing at bullets in the air. Twilmer slumped in the elevator. Victoria, noticing her partner's pain, pushed the button for the top floor. Twilmer quickly got out a potion and chugged it, curing her of the pain in her shoulder. She watched the numbers count off as she went up. She didn't know what to expect and felt too betrayed to even comprehend what could be awaiting her.

ooo

End Part 18

I'm evil, aren't I? :3


	19. Extra 3 Wild West Aura

Pokemon World Online

Extra 3 aka Part 19: Wild West Aura

Disclaimer: I do not own Aura or Pokemon. This was written for Moya 3 for a birthday presant with her character. Not part of the main series, but I wanted to post it. It was actually her idea, but yeah ; it takes a break from the plot, so I like :3 I'm evil. So yes, no sequence whatsoever. So until this point, she was the only one to have read this. It'd be interesting to get some more to read ; caution, swearing.

ooo

"It's been awhile since we've done this, old friend," Aura patted Sparia affectionately. Sparia hummed happily as the two of them glanced over the board they were standing in front of. Local bounties were placed on the bulletin board located near the square of each town. Aura usually didn't even bother with them as they had small prizes or money attached to their heads. She usually went after bigger heads and rarer prizes, but today she settled for the board.

The main reason was that she wanted a relaxing hunt. Her usual prey required deep thinking and planning beforehand. Today was her day off and she didn't want to spend it on another tiring bounty hunt. "You know what, Sparia? Why don't you pick the bounty we go after today?" The Empoleon grinned and considered the choices present.

Some were very old and probably no longer valid while others were ridiculously simple. Sparia finally settled for one that offered a bit of a challenge and a decent reward. "That's my girl," Aura said fondly to the Empoleon, who cooed in contentment. "Let's see, our target is named Ixia and she has a Wigglytuff as a partner? Well, I should know not to judge by looks alone…" Aura trailed off as she thought of a certain Pichu. "Okay the reward is only a Kyogre Sapphire: a standard rare item. This is only a day old, so she should be nearby."

Aura took the attached chip on the post and placed it into her map. Only a few bounties had location chips and they were usually ones that the local moderator was too lazy to go after. A flashing light appeared with the location of their target. "She's still in town? That's odd. Usually they leave town. Oh well, come on Sparia." Sparia nodded and followed his partner as the two left the board. They took a few streets and made their way towards the location.

"It's coming from in that building," Aura pointed to a western style saloon from the days of the cowboys. Sparia cast a critical eye at the filthy, run down building, but there was a quant charm to it. Aura adjusted her goggles and made sure she had easy access to her katanas if necessary. She ran up to the door and peered in, noticing that everyone inside was wearing Wild West clothing.

"We're going to stick out like sore thumbs if we go in there dressed like this," Aura muttered, tapping her lips with her finger. She sighed and looked around, noticing a nearby n00b talking to her Poochyena.

"These clothes are adorable on us! We really got the feel of the atmosphere with them," she twirled around, showing off her new outfit. The girl was about Aura's height and build. A light bulb flashed above Aura's head and an evil gleam appeared in her eye. Sparia looked over at her warily.

Aura walked over to the girl and pulled out her katanas. The girl grabbed her Poochyena and started to back up. "What do you want with us?" she asked, looking as if she were about to wet her pants.

"I want you to take off your clothes," Aura smirked at her choice of words and suppressed a laugh at the look on the girl's face. "I need to borrow them," Aura added as an after thought.

"I paid good money for these clothes," the girl responded, sounding unsure of herself.

"I'll give you a Kyogre Sapphire for them," Aura offered, then added inaudibly, "I'm going to be getting another one soon anyways."

"Is that worth more than this outfit?" she asked. Her Poochyena barked and jumped form the girl's arms.

"It'll buy you about five of those outfits." That was all the girl needed to hear. She quickly took them off and handed them to Aura, who threw the Sapphire at her, almost hitting the girl in the head. The girl was wearing a skimpy outfit underneath. "Oh and I need your Poochyena's hat as well."

"Here," the girl took the hat off her Poochyena and handed it to Aura. The tiny pup didn't seem very happy about this, so it decided to give Aura a parting gift…right on her boot.

"SON OF A-" Aura shouted and drew her katanas in preparation to cut down the Poochyena. The girl used a warp key to quickly transport her and the critter far away. "I just bought a new pair of these," Aura sighed and changed from her soaking boots into the ones she had just received. "I swear if that thing ever crosses my path again there will be one less Poochyena in this game," Aura growled.

The two then dressed in their new found clothing. Aura felt completely ridiculous in the frilly western dress and Sparia seemed to have trouble putting the hat on with his protruding crown. "Here, I'll rip a hold in it." Aura took the hat and pulled it, making a hole big enough for Sparia's crown like feature to stick through. The Empoleon grumbled in disgust at the hat, which smelled of Poochyena. "We just have to wear these while we go look for Ixia and her Wigglytuff," Aura said more to sooth her discomfort in the frills and lace dress that Sparia's discomfort at the hat.

Aura walked back over to the western style saloon and threw the doors open; her boots clicked on the hard wood floor. Everyone stopped talking to stare at her. Aura felt slightly self-conscious in the dress, but she stood confidently and strode on over to the counter. As she sat down, the chatter commenced once more. "What can I do for you, lass?" the barkeeper asked.

"Nothing, I'm here on a bounty search," Aura motioned for him to keep his voice down and he nodded to show he understood.

"You don't say, may I ask who?" he asked as he polished a mug.

"Some girl by the name of Ixia and her Wigglytuff. There isn't a picture to go with the post, but there was a locator chip and it says that she's somewhere in this place," Aura motioned to the building around them. "Got any information?"

"Well, there's a Wigglytuff over there, if that's what you're meaning," the bar tender offered. Aura nodded a thanks and passed him some poke money for the information, which he gratefully accepted. Aura pushed her stool back and stood up, looking for the Wigglytuff. It wasn't hard to spot as it was wearing an elaborate Western costume with a very flamboyant hat. It was standing up on stage and had just started the player piano. The other gamer sin the saloon got up and started hollering and having a good time.

The Wigglytuff opened its mouth to sing and Aura instinctively pulled out her pair of Whismer ear plugs. She placed them in her ears and watched as Wigglytuff sang. As it sang, the others stopped dancing and stood still. Their eyes then began to glow red, except the bartender who went right on cleaning mugs. "Is that mind control?" Aura asked Sparia, but she saw that Sparia's eyes were also glowing red. "Damn it, I forgot to give her a set." Aura smacked her forehead.

At the sound of her voice, all the gamers turned and looked at her. Wigglytuff stopped singing and looked up at her as well and it didn't look very happy. "Oh shit," Aura cursed as the gamers started to attack her. With her katanas she made quick work of the gamers and their partners; however she was unwilling to harm Sparia. "Snap out of it!" she shouted. Sparia ignored her and Aura used one of her katanas to block a steel wing.

While blocking Sparia's attacks, which was relatively easy since Aura knew Sparia's attacks and tactics as well as her own, Aura made her way to the Wigglytuff, who was grinning very arrogantly. It was wearing a cowboy hat and a belt with what appeared to be a paintball gun on its side. "If this Pokémon is this bad, then I'd hate to meet the trainer," Aura grumbled, and then something seemed to click in her mind. She dodged a metal claw and took out the bulletin. She scanned it and then slapped her forehead. "We're not looking for Ixia; we're looking for the Wigglytuff. That's why it specifically mentions the Wigglytuff," she cursed as she shoved the bulletin back into her inventory.

Aura raised her katanas and prepared to strike the pink Pokémon, however Sparia used her wing to block the attack from striking the Wigglytuff. "You pink little bastard!" Aura cursed. "That's it," Aura took out her Calming bell and rang it once. Sparia stopped attacking and blinked. The bell broke after the use. Aura didn't mind using the item as much as she usually would because it was for Sparia and the item wasn't rare. Calming bells were used to heal Pokémon from berserk status and Confusion, both of which had been inflicted on the Empoleon.

"Ready to show this Wigglytuff that it should learn to shut the fuck up?" Aura asked, smiling at her penguin Pokemon partner. Sparia nodded and together the two used point smash to quickly defeat the pissed off pink puff. Sparia picked up the Wigglytuff, which Aura had bound with her Seviper rope. "Alright, the moderator's office is on this side of town, unfortunately. That means we have to be in these ridiculous outfits longer." The two made the quick walk to the moderator's office and burst through the saloon style doors. "I see you have captured Big Voice the kid," the moderator commented, adjusting his cowboy hat. He had a piece of wheat sticking out of his mouth, which he was chewing on.

"The hell is wrong with your voice?" Aura asked him, raising her eyebrow. Sparia sniffed in disgust at the sweat stains on the mod's shirt and brown vest.

"Little missy, I will not tolerate such language in my presence. You can call me Sheriff and I run this town. I like to keep it peaceful." He walked over to meet him, boots clomping against the floor.

"This whole town is one big loony bin," Aura grumbled. She was hoping that the bounty would be dealt with swiftly so she could escape this hell hole.

"Well, now that Big Voice is in custody, Ixia will be happy. We can begin the deleting now," he sighed, his accent strong.

"Deleting? What deleting?" Aura asked, not liking where this was going.

"We're going to delete this Wigglytuff, of course." The Sheriff walked towards Aura, who backed away.

"Sorry, but I don't condone the senseless deleting of Pokemon." Aura unlocked her katanas from their sheaths.

"Little missy, I dare say that if you don't cut out this tom foolery, then I will have no choice but to put a bounty on your head."

"Good luck with finding someone who wants to take down a level 90 ex-top ten member with a rare Darkrai crystal." Aura took pleasure in the look on the sheriff's face. "Come on Sparia. Oh, and I'm taller then you, so that would make you the 'little missy'." Aura glared at him before she sped out of the building. The two made great time, ignoring Sheriff's futile shouts. He knew no one would go after her, but that didn't mean he couldn't still complain.

"Alright then, this should be good," Aura said as the two entered the nearby desert area and the town had disappeared from their line of sight. "Set down Big Voice or whatever this thing's name is," Aura commanded. Sparia set it down and the Wigglytuff looked up gratefully. "So long, kid." The Wigglytuff tipped its hat at them and walked off into the sunset.

"What an unusually fucked up day," Aura commented, taking the clothes off and putting them into her inventory. Then she realized that she had traded her only Kyogre Sapphire for them. "SHIT!" she yelled loudly enough to disturb some snoozing Cacnea. "Damn my conscious! Damn it to hell!"


	20. Special 2 My Life's Dream

Attila returned from the bathroom after washing his hands. They had been really sticky and it felt good to have them clean. However, this wasn't the same as what he had hoped, but Dream said that his dreams would eventually come true. Until then, this would make do. He sat down at his computer and began to boot up Pokémon World Online. As it was loading, he got up and walked around his room. Football memorabilia of all sorts hung from the walls. His favorite team had to be his own school. He had already been promised many scholarships for his skills. He wasn't the captain of the football team for nothing. He wasn't a respected captain for reasons and it was those reasons that mentally tore away at him.

Was it really such a terrible thing that he had not been laid? This was something he wanted more than those scholarships offered to him. He had never had luck finding a steady girlfriend, let alone someone who would steal from him the one thing he wanted to give up more than any other. Just as he was about to put his online gaming helmet on, his cell phone rang. "Hello?" Attila answered.

The voice on the other side dripped of honey and brought a sick smile to Attila's face. "Your dreams will now come true."

ooo

Pokémon World Online

Special 2 (Part 20): My Life's Dream

Disclaimer: I own the characters in this fic, Dream and Ontaro, for once XD I am SO evil. Yep, no continuation of the main plot for you. Now it's time for some explanations. Will the next part continue the main story? MWAHAHAHA :3

Rated to be safe because of...sexual...hints, but nothing more because I don't write those (ignores her fic Twilight Temptations). This part is a bit...yeah...just bear with me. Sexual content, but mostly just hinting at, nothing explicit, but just be warned. Yeah, now enjoy back story time and if some things make you uncomfortable, skip them because those parts aren't important. Anything with just Dream is going to end up this way. I love my little villainess :3

I'm listening to "Brother (English version)" by Vic Mignoga to help me write this XD it's so pretty, you should go download it :3 And kudos to those of you who catch the Iron Chef allusion XD

In fact, any young readers, just COMPLETELY skip this part.

ooo

Ontaro was riding alongside Dream on Arceus' mighty and graceful back, the wind blowing his ponytail, which was wrapped in cloth. Arceus had not said one word to them since he had escaped with Dream on the God's back. He knew the God could speak as it had done so before to Dream, though he didn't exactly understand it then either. "All will be over shortly." That sounded rather cryptic to Ontaro, but he didn't complain as his dream was coming true today. However, he didn't understand why Arceus was helping them if they were betraying Twilmer and her party. Then again, that didn't make them evil and the God seemed to have his own agenda, but what was it? And would his dreams truly come true today? He continued to ponder these thoughts as he watched the landscape below them speed away. Rivers and mountain ranges slipped away as they continued their flight north according to Ontaro's compass. Machop looked up at him sadly and shook her head. She did not understand humans and that understanding seemed to have only lessoned in the past few days. She tried to sit closer to him; however he ignored her once again and looked up at Dream.

Dream turned to him and smiled. "I can sense your thoughts. Once we get to Firewall Mountain, then all will be better. For both of us." Dream turned away and urged Arceus forward, speaking in a language that Ontaro did not understand. Firewall Mountain was the place where Twilmer had become a Pichu, if he remembered correctly. Why were they going there? "So many questions," Dream broke the silence. Ontaro looked up at her questioningly. "All will be answered shortly." Dream was slightly irritated by the constant menagerie of questions on Ontaro's mind. It was no wonder the kid had never been laid before. Oh well, he was necessary to her plan and, if all went well, she could have her revenge.

A few moments later, the menacing peaks of Firewall Mountain loomed ahead of them and the landed in the middle of the vast wasteland soon after. As soon as Dream, Ontaro, Machop, and Nightmare were off of Arceus' back, he flew off faster than the eye could trace. Dream smiled, "He cannot do anything against me. He has no choice but to obey." With that, she turned to face the glitch in the center of the mountains. A huge slash, as if Victoria had taken out her anger on the sky, hovered in the air. Everything seemed to be in a state of suspended motion in this land. Rocks hung in the air as if they had been caught in a huge gail. He touched one and it fell, causing him to jump at the sudden sound. Dream didn't flinch or turn around as she walked over to the giant glitch and touched it. The glitch glowed a deep shade of red before returning to its normal state. She walked away with a smile. "Twilmer will be here soon enough. Now onwards to more important matters."

Ontaro saw her approaching him and all his being was focused on her ruby red lips and the way they seemed to shine in the sunlight. Enrapt in the movements they made, he wasn't even sure what they were saying anymore. All he knew was that they were coming towards him and he so wanted them to steal him away and to take from him what he had never wanted in the first place-or perhaps he had at some point-but none of that mattered now...

She came towards him and the black lace that covered her fell to the ground silently like a deadly viper shedding its skin. Ontaro stood there, blood pulsing in his ears, and simply watched as she glided over to him. Ontaro dropped his shield, which rolled down the slope where he stood and came to a stop at Machop's feet. She simply grabbed the shield and hid behind it, not wanting to see what was coming next. For this act being one online, it felt so real. As those fiery red rubies brushed his lips, he felt it fully in real life, which not only scared him, but also spurred his lust onward. Dream let no mercy flow from her lips as she proceeded to furiously brush them over Ontaro's skin, and he could feel it vividly and he groaned at the tease. Dream smiled as she started to make Ontaro's dream come true and let out a small gasp, closing her eyes as an image came to her. An image which she had no recollectance. An image that sped towards her as her breathing quickened.

ooo

A girl with greasy black hair, unnaturally pale skin, and a slim frame sat near the back of a large class room, tapping her pencil nervously on her notes, leaving many dots on the page. Most of her notes were covered in these marks. She did not know anyone nor was she expected to at Pembroke University because of the size. An average class was well over 300 students. She simply watched them from behind tortured green eyes; eyes that trusted none of the people she was forced to share the room with. "Class dismissed," the professor waved as the students quickly gathered their things and exited the room. She was the first out, her long hair flowing behind her. She ignored everyone she met on the streets, even if they shouted a friendly salutation to her. There was only one thing they all wanted anyways and she didn't feel like giving it to them at that moment. No, safety was in her apartment. Once she finally arrived, she rushed up the stairs and ran into her apartment, slamming the door behind. She finally began to breathe normally. Her muscles relaxed and she threw down her bag of school books, slumping on the couch staring straight ahead. She grabbed one of the pillows, fiddling with the tassels that decorated it with her long, slender fingers.

The doorbell rang and she crept over to it. She held the pillow in one hand as she opened the door with the other. "I have a delivery for a Miss Elvda McMillan. That you?" a delivery man wearing a brown suit looked up at the black haired woman from over the clipboard he had been reading her name from.

"That would be me," she purred seductively, dropping the pillow to the ground.

"Umm, well, you have a package. If you wouldn't mind signing here," he stammered as he handed Elvda the clipboard. She took the pen he offered her and grinned at him as she signed, never taking her eyes from his. The delivery man shifted uncomfortably as a light sheen of sweat formed on his forehead. She finished and handed it to him with a sly grin. He handed her the package and left as fast as he could, holding the clipboard in front of him awkwardly.

As soon as he was gone, a frown fell on Elvda's face as she considered the package. Finally she decided it was alright to open. Carefully removing the packaging tape, she discovered it was the game she had ordered several weeks ago. She ran her hand along the smooth packaging of Pokémon World Online. A small smile began to form on her face as she walked over to her laptop.

ooo

She opened her eyes as Ontaro's pants, soaked in sweat, brushed by her face. She grinned and teased him, enjoying the look of pure and absolute pleasure on the young defender's face and also the look of impatience. Oh his dream would come true soon enough, but she wanted her fun as well. "I exist to make dreams come true," she breathed huskily, but which of their dreams were coming true now? Was it only his? What were these images that came faster than the waves of intense pleasure?

ooo

It was heaven for her. She couldn't wait for the pointless classes to end and the people to go away so she could be alone with her precious Pokémon World Online. She belonged there. She, a grace master named Thorn, and her partner, a Misdreavous named Rose, had quickly escalated to level 43 in only a week. She was the most revered grace master in her clan and even the top ten took special interest in her quick level gaining skills. This was her life now and that other life was simply a waking nightmare that she had to go through every day. Oh how she loved this world. It made putting up with the nightmare all the more survivable when she knew the dream was waiting for her in her apartment. This was her dream life and how she truly wished to live it. Weeks turned to months and months turned into a year and her absences in class increased as her online time increased. Eventually she stopped going to class, which went unnoticed by her professors since she always sat in the back of class anyways and they had hundreds of other students to deal with, and stayed online. She rarely got up to eat or sleep anymore. She didn't want to miss a moment of her dream...

ooo

Their sweat mixed-a heavy, animalistic aroma. Dream kept up the teasing, as was her way, but that failed to satisfy her. She wanted Ontaro, oh how she wanted him. This longing surprised her. She shook her head, damp locks of her long, black hair whipping about her head. She couldn't wait any longer and she could tell from the moans of frustration and a certain gesture, neither could Ontaro. She grinned evilly and allowed him to begin the motions.

ooo

It was hot, but temperature mattered little to her. She had spotted a large, majestic, white body that could only belong to the infamous glitch Pokémon. Rumor had it that this Pokémon had been the one Satoshi had first tried to create when he started the online Pokémon world; however the creature had no sooner been created that it disappeared into the coding never to be spotted or traced again despite Satoshi's many efforts. She ran to the spot where it had been, Rose trailing behind. The heat grew greater until the sweat evaporated off of her skin. Still, she wouldn't stop playing. The apartment building was on fire. The flames licked at the building; destroying everything not made of brick or stone. Elvda never stopped playing. The flames entered the room. Elvda never stopped playing. The flames consumed her personal belongings. Elvda never stopped playing. The flames ended her life. Elvda never stopped playing.

As the flames finished their course through the building, the heat caused Elvda's body and her computer to melt together, flesh and machine mixing in a horrific way, finally bonding Elvda to the world that had become her life.

ooo

A twinge of familiarity hit Dream as small convulsions of pleasure coursed through her body, escaping through her mouth in a low moan. Here she was hoping to set the young defender alive by toying with him and here he was bringing a life she did not remember rushing back to her. Ontaro could feel every move, every pleasure point, every high, and he wanted more. He worked on her selfishly and harder, wanting more. Dream allowed him, wanting more as well. The more pleasure she felt, as she reached her highest point, the more the images (memories?) flooded her.

ooo

A bright light flooded her vision. Vision? Hadn't she just died? She could not remember anything of what had happened and didn't want to. All that was important to her now was the light. She stumbled forward blindly through the dark, however the light did not get any closer. She stopped walking and the light faded from sight. Was this hell? She could remember intense heat unlike anything she had ever felt before. Still, this didn't feel like an eternal realm of torture. The light came back and she shielded her eyes as it grew larger and larger. She then stood face to face with the glitch God himself. He considered her with his emerald, piercing eyes and nodded. "So you were able to surpass earthly limitations."

"What has happened?" Elvda, or what had been Elvda, asked.

"Somehow through an act of some terrible, terrible god, through the melting of flesh and machine, you have come before me. The heat must have caused your soul to fuse into the digital world," Arceus roared, furious.

"How is that possible?" She didn't understand what was going on.

"I don't know. It shouldn't be possible. Then again, I only know what information I am fed through the digital energy that runs this system. A human player known as Trellaine did a study on this phenomenon which he calls the fourth plane. It doesn't interest me as I don't care for humans. At any rate you are like me now. You are a glitch, an untraceable glitch, a living glitch. You are the dark and I, the light." Arceus took on angered look at her and roared once more before disappearing.

She fell over, passing out. When she woke, she felt grass under her body. Looking around she noticed a beautiful field of assorted wild flowers. She also noticed two people nearby in cloaks of green. "Look at how strong my Caterpie is getting!" one said to the other, showing off his tiny caterpillar.

"It's very well taken care of," the other robed man was much older and more experienced. A Butterfree perched atop his head. "One day, your little Caterpie will be just as strong as my Cesar here." The Butterfree fluttered its wings and looked proud of its strength.

"I hope so! Can we meet here again tomorrow? My mom says it's time for dinner." The young boy looked up hopefully into the face of the older man who smiled.

"Of course, that'll be fine." The young boy nodded and disappeared. She gasped and the elder man looked up at her. "I wasn't aware anyone else was ther-oh for god's sake, put some clothes on. They're cheap enough in this game and it shouldn't be that hard to find a pair." the man shielded his eyes.

She looked down and discovered that she was naked. Wait, that man had talked of the game. Was she in Pokémon World Online? She saw a small bag lying beside her from where she was sitting in the grass. She opened it and the inventory menu popped up. She saw that she had only one outfit. It was an out comprised mostly of black lace and she adored it. She put it on and examined herself in the small lake beside the road. "I'm in the game," she whispered as if saying it any louder would cause everything to disappear.

"Well, if you logged on you are. Oh, you must be a new player, then. I am GuyRandamas, but you may call me guy." The male gamer held out his hand and she gratefully accepted it. "What's your screen name?"

"My screen name?" she considered this. What was her name? Instantly it came to her. "I am Dream." she replied simply, turning to face Guy. Cesar fluttered its wings unrestlessly and seemed to fear Dream.

"Dream, eh? I would have assumed that screen name would already be taken. Anyways, I'm an herbalist. I'm a bit down on my PWO money, so I decided to take up a tutoring job. It amuses me how that kid has more money than several older players put together. Then again, newbie missions do tend to pay higher. I am rambling, though," Guy laughed heartily. Dream noticed a butter knife at his side in a sheath and shook her head, laughing as well. This was a dream come true.

"My dream came true recently. I wish more people could experience this feeling of having their greatest dream come true." Dream looked at herself in the lake. She looked like a perfect combination of her old character, Thorn, and her human self, Elvda.

"Well, why don't you do just that?" Guy suggested. Dream looked up at him confused. "Why don't you help others have their dreams come true, well in the game at least?"

"That's a really great idea!" Dream clapped her hands together, a grin crossing her face.

"Oh, look at the time, I must be going. It was nice meeting you, Dream." Guy waved as he turned on the spot and disappeared. Dream stared at the spot he had been and laughed gaily. She was in her dream world. She was part of Pokémon World Online. She was free of real life. How could she not spread this joy to others? She twirled on the spot, dancing in a state of pure ecstasy. Several Pidgey flew over head and a Rattata ran through the field in front of her. She had never felt so alive.

ooo

She lay at Ontaro's side more alive than she had been since she had actually been alive. He had awakened something in her, though she wasn't sure exactly what it was just yet. Ontaro laid there exhausted both in real life and in the game, however he wasn't ready for this to be finished and neither was she. She had never enjoyed herself like this before and the passion inside her burned as she rolled on top of Ontaro, staring into his brown eyes. He looked back at her, strength returning, and she kissed his neck softly, then fiercer, gaining pleasure from Ontaro's reactions.

ooo

She had made so many dreams come true. She was able to manipulate the flow of data to create things for others to make their wildest dreams come true. It was wonderful to share with others the joy she felt, however the gamers always left her afterwards to do something in real life, as they called the other world. Dream knew she had been part of this world before, but she had no memories of her time spent there. She would sometimes try, but gave up. There was nothing left for her out there now that her dreams had all come true. She had just completed a place for gamers to go who didn't exactly follow the rules. It had been named the underground and, as all her creations, was untraceable by PWO Corp. She watched as the members entered, thanking her. She smiled and walked away. Time meant nothing to her and she enjoyed the stars above as she walked through the barren hills of the Eastern lands. She saw a shooting star, which was unusual for this area. It was probably a signal for the Jirachi event to begin. She looked at her menu and noticed it had opened to her, as she had suspected. She accessed it, wondering just what exactly would happen if the wish maker and the dream creator met.

Jirachi floated down towards her, its wish tags blowing in the wind. "I can grant you a wish if you help me." Jirachi uttered the line it had been programmed to say. This was something that irritated Dream. So many Pokémon were programmed to completely obey the programming. If only she could find a way to change that. Perhaps she could!

"What do you need help with?" Dream asked, looking up at the small Pokémon.

"I need you to find my three wish tags for me. They blew away in the wind and I need them before the Tanabata." Jirachi floated over Dream's head. This mission didn't sound hard at all and with her ability to enter the data stream, it wouldn't take her long at all. Jirachi floated stationary while she searched. It didn't take her long at all to discover the three blue-green tags on the barren hills. She brought them to Jirachi. Jirachi rose into the air and began to fly around, light trailing behind him. He came to a stop in front of dream and bowed. "I will now grant you one wish," Jirachi smiled down at Dream sweetly, expecting the same wish as everyone else who had ever completed the event, which mostly consisted of money, moderator status, or weaponry of some sort.

An evil grin crossed her face. "One wish, eh? I would like to know how I could possibly go about making this world into a real one." Dream looked up at Jirachi, not expecting an answer.

"Make this place real? I mean sure this place is based off of a real planet out in the real solar system somewhere, but to turn this place real would take something from that other world and merging it with the main frame. I'm afraid the gamer Trellaine would know more about it than me as he did a study on those sorts of things." Jirachi tilted his head, a troubling expression crossing his face.

"Well, could you get me a piece of something from that other world?" Dream asked.

"No, but Arceus can." With that, Jirachi disappeared, having fulfilled Dream's wish of the knowledge of turning Pokémon World Online real.

So there was a real Pokémon inhabited world out there? Had Satoshi perhaps based this world on the other one? There was no way for her to know for sure unless she asked him herself and that was very unlikely to happen. She stared up at the stars above her. They looked so real yet they were fake. She sighed, sitting on the barren mountain side, feeling lonely for the first time since her dream came true.

ooo

Dream and Ontaro simply gazed into each other's eyes. Dream was incapable of love, however she felt a soft spot for this boy who had awaken so much inside of her. Ontaro stroked her smooth cheek with his rough hand. Dream shivered slightly at his touch and smiled at him. Despite what her lips had been through, they still remained as red as they had always been. Taking her smooth, creamy shoulders in his hands, he once again started his motions, though less vigorously this time. The boy was getting tired. Dream smiled at him and tried to make up for his lack of energy with simple caresses of her lips against his. Ontaro breathed heavily as his muscles contracted. Dream's felt hers begin again as well as another memory washed over her.

ooo

She had to find something, anything, to create a real world out of this online one of binary and machine. She sped onward with the speed of the grace master she had been when she had been Thorn. That was it! She stopped running and looked up at the darkening sky. She was missing her Rose. She was missing a partner. Dream turned and began to run off towards the abandoned mansion of Cressor's Hill as that was where she had met her Rose. Luckily she was close by so it only took her about an hour to reach the mansion. Many ghost type Pokémon gathered there, however she wanted a Misdreavous. She entered the mansion slowly, the door creaking open slowly. She entered cautiously so not to scare the ghost Pokémon. Once inside, she sensed something was wrong immediately. The mansion was well lit and voices could be heard talking jovially. The scent of freshly cooked HP restoring foods hung heavily in the air.

She looked around and noticed a fire flickering in the hearth. She walked by it and saw a group of item hunters and their stashes playing some sort of card game. So these gamers had turned this special place in the memory that was quickly fading from her. There were no ghost Pokémon left here because of them. She would teach them for messing with this place. Reaching into the coding, she created a Misdreavous of her very own design. It was slightly differently colored than what Rose had been, and there was an evil air about it, but Dream could sense the same connection with this Misdreavous as she had had with her Rose. "I am the Dream and you will be the Nightmare." Dream peeked out at the Item Hunters gathered at the table most obviously drunk. "Now go forth and make their nightmares come true." nightmare gladly ablidged and disappeared into the dining room.

Dream heard screams as she watched Nightmare bring each of their worst nightmares to life in vivid detail. The men ran shouting out of the mansion and into the life, leaving behind all of their belongings. Dream walked over to the treasures, examining each piece. A lot were just standard items; however one orb in particular caught her interest. It glowed brightly and as far as she could sense, it had no coding. Where on PWO had they gotten this? She wished now she hadn't scared them away so she could find out. Maybe this was what she had been looking for this entire time. Either way, she put it and the rest of the items into her inventory, snuffing out the fire in the fireplace before she left, her new partner Nightmare trailing behind her.

ooo

It was all over. The poor boy couldn't do anymore as he had never had an experience in this area before, but what he had done was enough for Dream. She thought about the orb. It had been that point, she was sure of it, that her memories of everything had left her. She had become obsessed with that orb because she was sure it was the item she had been looking for. She looked beside her to find Ontaro fast asleep. She smiled slightly and stood, clothing herself in her usual black lace. She still felt nothing for the boy, having lost all of her feelings a long time ago, but she at the least saw him as a valuable tool and that was close enough. She walked over to the glitch. It had been this glitch that had caused Twilmer so much humiliation. Twilmer really deserved what she got for what she had done to her.

Dream remembered this in full detail as this had been after she had retrieved the orb that plagued her mind...

ooo

Announcements had been posted all over PWO. One of the current administrators was resigning so there was a position open and just about everyone on PWO wanted it. Dream caught wind of this and knew that this position had to be hers. She could only imagine all the dreams she could bring to reality if she held this position. Everyone who was interested was supposed to gather in the square of the city at the base of PWO Corp head quarters. Greensboro wasn't the largest city in PWO but it was large enough to hold the hundreds of gamers gathered in the square. Dream edged her way forward and ran into another grace master as opposite from her as possible. Dream's hair was a sleek and seducing shade of black that flowed freely about her shoulders whereas this woman had hair as white as the snow on the peak of the Aboinia mountain range that she had loosely ties back in a pony tail save for a few stubborn locks that framed her face. Dream was dressed only in black and this girl mainly in white. Dream's green eyes flashed at the woman's blue ones. The woman noticed Dream staring at her and turned around. "What the heck do you want?" The woman glared at her; hands on her hips.

"Nothing, I was just noticing you are wearing a lot of white. My name is Dream." Dream introduced, though she didn't offer her hand to the woman.

"I'm Twilmer, and don't forget that name. I'm the moderator of Veilstone City at the base of Mount Coronet. I've brought the flow of hacking and n00bs in that area down to nearly zero percent since I've taken that position." Twilmer flicked the hair that framed her face in a way that greatly annoyed Dream. Twilmer tapped her foot impatiently. Dream noticed that her boots were an annoying shade of white. How could one girl want to wear so much white? None of that mattered. Names were starting to be called for the interview of all those gathered. A basic questionnaire would be enough to separate those who may actually be able to do the job from those who just wanted it simply for the fame and honor they assumed would follow.

"Dream," a booming voice called. Dream swept by Twilmer, making sure her heeled black boots kicked dirt onto Twilmer's white ones. Twilmer grunted and muttered something, but didn't pursue Dream, who was mildly disappointed at that fact. Dream entered a small room inside one of the buildings and sat in front of the suit who was holding a clipboard, considering some text Dream could not see. "According to the data we dug up on you, you don't exist on any server. Also from what I gather from other gamers, you are quite the hacker, though we have no proof on this. What do you have to say about this?" The suit looked up at her, considering her. Dream could see the slight lust in his eyes. As long as she had that, she would be able to some out on top.

"Oh, but I could do so much for Pokémon World Online if I were made administrator." Dream leaned on the desk, making sure some of her more prominant features stood out. The suit began to sweat and he coughed lightly. "I could make this game more realistic and I could serve under Satoshi so well." She leaned closer to the suit who was clearly flustered.

"Alright, you get a pass to the next round, only because you seem sincere." Success! Dream grabbed the slip form him and stalked out, leaving behind a confused suit. Dream simply grinned and scanned the crowd that was left, annoyed to see Twilmer clutching a similar slip. Her purple leotard clung closely to her body. Twilmer was one of those girls oblivious to her true beauty and simply wore a leotard for function reasons as she was a grace master and a tight fitting outfit allowed for maximum movement, though she wore a white robe over her shoulders, which was a great hindrance. Whatever. This girl didn't seem to understand that in order to get anywhere, one had to use the pixels in the front. Dream smiled as the selection process continued.

Eventually, it was down to Twilmer and Dream. One of the suits stepped forward and cleared his throat. "It seems that our decision is down to you two. We have eliminated as far as we could. This decision will be up to the great Satoshi Tajiri." The suit bowed. Twilmer took her staff and kneeled down, holding it in front of her. Her Sneasal did the same beside her. Dream followed suit, though Nightmare was unable to bow, so she simply floated nearer to the ground.

Footsteps could be heard coming in front of them. The two looked up to see Satoshi coming forward. He had short brown hair and tanned skin. A healthy Pidgeot was perched on his staff and his robe dragged the ground. Twilmer gasped slightly at being in such proximity to her idol. Dream merely wondered how to turn the situation in her favor. A Tailow flew over to Satoshi, dropping a sweet plum into his hand. Satoshi took it and bit into it, enjoy the sweet, tangy flesh of the fruit. Some of the juices dripped down his chin and he simply wiped them away with a Budew pattern handkerchief. Twilmer seemed humbled at this act merely because Satoshi Tajiri had done it. Dream merely looked up at him and waited impatiently for his decision. "It seems both of you have the right qualities to be an administrator. The main one being the time to work odd hours. One of you, however, is more qualified. This decision wasn't very hard for me to make, to be honest."

"Oh yes, of course-" Dream began, but Satoshi cut her off.

"I don't need input." Dream looked taken back, but she continued to bow despite the anger that was simmering inside. "That person would be Twilmer." Twilmer looked up, mouth agape. Dream heard nothing more as her blood boiled and she saw red. Dream didn't remember much after that except that she willed herself to move as far away from that place as possible and found herself one again in Arceus' presence. Nothing made sense to her anymore and she simply remembered a warning about the orb that fell on deaf ears.

ooo

Dream looked around her, fully remembering every detail of her odd existence. She had already set her plans in action to make her first dream of a real Pokémon World Online come true. Now there just remained the matter of her second dream; her ultimate revenge on Twilmer.

ooo

End Special 2, Part 20

That was really fun to write :3 reviews muchly appreciated.


	21. The Under Ground

Pokémon World Online

Part 21: The Underground

Disclaimer: I don't own the idea of the underground or its members. Drix owns those. Yep, another part that doesn't continue the PWO Corp scene. Aren't I the worst? Anyways, I've been spitting these parts out lately: 3 well, as for dedications, I'm dedicating this part to Drix for the underground and the ideas and to Poland because it's not boring. Yep, now onwards to more PWO goodness. And this one is safe for all ages once more. No more limey things from me in PWO again. I'm typing this while eating a plum XD

Oh and I have a shirt I got from a camp that says "The Underground" on it (twas the theme of the camp) so I have deemed it my unofficial PWO Underground shirt. I'm wearing it right now :D okay, enough ranting for now, onwards to the fic.

ooo

Drix closed his eyes, enjoying the wind that rushed by his face, causing his purple hair to whip violently about his head. He had to hand it to PWO Corp; they made very realistic effects and spared no details in their game. Pokémon World Online was rather pricey, but the money was well worth it. "Land down there," Drix coaxed his Salamance, petting her neck. Her smooth, blue scales shimmered in the early morning sunlight as she flew gracefully through the sky. Salamance growled softly to show that she had heard and began her descent. Drix never used Salamance for battling much anymore, preferring to battle on his own, but the dragoness was really special to him. He didn't know what he would do if anything happened to her.

Salamance landed in front of a rundown shack near Greensboro City. She looked up at him as he slid off her back. He patted her head and gave her a treat from his inventory. Salamance took the treat and ate it in one quick bite. Drix waved to his dragoness as she took off back to the skies. He stood watching her wheel through the sky before entering the shack. He remembered that as a Bagon she had always dreamed of flying. She often flung herself from high places in hopes that she had learned a trick or two, but was always woken to reality when she crashed into the ground. It had been difficult raising her, but in the end it had been so rewarding and he wouldn't trade that experience for anything.

Drix entered the shack and walked over to a small console mounted on one of the walls. He typed in a password and the wall began to move back, revealing a spiraling staircase. Drix began the descent, darkness swallowing him the further down he went. Above him, the wall moved back into place, closing off the exit. He was unphased by this and continued down the stairs until he finally reached the bottom. Drix opened the door in front of him and stepped inside. As soon as he did, he heard a soft whistling of a dart. He lazily moved his head aside as a dart struck the wall where his head had been moments before. "Damn it, Drix!" a woman with flaming red hair looked up at Drix with a face full of anger, a blow pipe clutched in her right hand. She was wearing a yellow half shirt that clung closely to her body and short shorts that matched. Beside her, her Shuckle was slithering over to her.

"Oh hello, Luna," Drix said with a yawn.

"Don't you take that casual tone with your superior. We don't see you around the underground for weeks and then you think you can just saunter your way in here." Luna glared at him. Quick as a flash, Drix had his sword drawn and pressed to the young herbalist's throat.

"Superior, eh?" Drix smirked, letting the blade go and grinning at the look of terror that had just crossed Luna's face. "I'm a member of the top ten and I've agreed to help out with the Twilmer mission despite how much I can't stand that little fuzz ball of an admin. I'd keep your mouth shut if I were you." Luna gulped, but her usual annoyed expression crossed her face. She humphed and walked away with her nose in the air, Shuckle slithering behind her.

"Drix!" Drix heard his name chorused. He looked up to see the infamous mage twins, Shi and Sho. Their Kirlias waved at Drix. He waved at them with a smile. He always liked the twins. They were really easygoing and easy to get along with.

"How have you two been?" Drix asked.

"We've been great," Shi began

"but it's been really weird without you here," Sho continued

"everyday like you used to be." Shi finished.

Shi and Sho would often finish each other's sentences and speak almost as if they were one. "I've been busy taking care of some business topside, but I had a bit of a break today, so I thought I would update Maple on the mission. Do you know where he is?"

"He's in his office," Shi pointed further down one of the lavishly decorated halls.

"Though be careful, he hasn't been in the best mood." Sho added. Drix nodded and continued on his way.

Drix opened Maple's door and casually slinked in, shutting it behind him. "Who's that?" Maple looked up from his stack of paperwork. "Oh, Drix, what in the hell are you doing here? I thought you were supposed to be with the admin." Maple's light brown, long hair hung in his face as he began scribbling on a piece of paper in front of him.

"I came to update you on the situation and since when has it been a crime to see my old buddy?" Drix smirked, leaning on Maple's desk. Maple ignored him and continued his scribbling. Drix sighed and turned to face the opposite wall, looking at a painting of an Ursaring.

"You know," Maple said, still scribbling away, "I'm not the leader of the underground's top nine. You need to share information with Serena before coming to me."

"So that's how it is." Drix turned to leave. He had his hand on the door knob when Maple called for him to wait. Drix smirked, but made sure he had a straight face before turning to face Maple.

"I'm sorry, I'm just so stressed form all of this paperwork. I'm not sure what is going on, but Serena has us working like dogs, well, except you. A lot of the nine have bad feelings towards you because of this." Maple looked up at him, green eyes flickering in the light of the candle on his desk.

"You think having to listen to that brat is easy? It's taking all of my willpower to not take my sword to that egotistical prick." Anger flashed before Drix's eyes, but he remained calm.

"I'm sorry," Maple dropped his pen on the desk and held his head in his hands. "My brain has turned to mush from all of this stupid paper work. And here I was thinking that I could play PWO as an escape from real life." Maple laughed as did Drix. This was the old Maple he knew.

"Is this about Twilmer or the glitch?" Drix asked, leaning against the desk.

"Actually, it's about Dream," Drix nearly slid off the desk. "As you reported to us, she escaped with Arceus. Both are intractable glitches that shouldn't even exist in the first place and apparently they are complete opposites. Heh, it's almost like one is Satan and the other god. Anyways, I shouldn't say anymore as Serena wants to be the one to make all the big revelations." Maple rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, when's that meeting starting? I would like to get back as soon as possible. You know the one time I'm away from Twilmer's rag tag group will be the one time something goes wrong."

"Hmm," Maple looked at his watch and laughed, "the meeting should be starting about now. We better go to the meeting room or Serena will have our heads." The two men walked out of Maple's office and walked to the end of the hall where a pair of grand doors stood. Several players bustled about, however only eight were gathered at the doors, which wouldn't open until Serena commanded them to do so. While the underground was a rather large faction of gamers, only nine of them held any power and out of those nine, only Serena knew all the secrets of the complex system. The underground used to have a boss, however he quit playing one day unexpectedly and the group hadn't heard anything from him in over a year, and so the duties of the underground fell to her.

The twins, Shi and Sho, were waiting in the corner. They were amusing themselves by creating blue flames from their staffs. Their Kirlia clapped as they performed and those gathered laughed, including Luna. "It appears Serena is running late," a gruff voice spoke behind them. Drix turned to find Midget and his Machoke. Midget was a gamer who had accidentally set his height code much lower than it should've been. He always sat on the shoulder of his Machoke unless he needed to fight. He was one of the nine since he could fit into small place and easily hide to dig up information for the underground. No sooner had the words come out of his mouth than the doors swung open, revealing a large round table of white marble. Nine handsome leather chairs surrounded the table and in one of them was a strong young woman. She sat calmly, her Roserade at her side.

"Ahh, it's Queen Serena and the gamers of the round table time again," Ziac, a male swordsman with a large build, joked. Shi and Sho laughed while Luna merely looked annoyed. Ziac was often described as the loveable idiot of the group and always managed to bring a few laughs in a desperate situation; something Serena and their previous boss had found invaluable.

"Xate, bring the minutes form the last meeting here," Serena ordered in her dangerously calm voice. Green hair snaked down her back like vines on a great oak. Xate, an item hunter who hid behind his Lucario mask and didn't have a partner of his own at the moment, nodded and brought the notes over to Serena as the rest took their seats. Drix saw, to his displeasure, that he was seated next to Luna. "Okay," Serena said, silence instantly falling across the room. She leaned her grace master staff against the table as she stood, looking each of the eight gathered before her in the eye, save Xate who always wore his mask. "Last meeting we discussed Drix going to accompany the newest admin on her journey to fix a glitch on Firewall. The motion was passed and now Drix has been with Twilmer for a couple of weeks. How's that been going?"

Serena was one of the only people whom Drix would obey outright without question. "It's been okay. Twilmer annoys the shit out of me, but the rest of her party isn't that bad. There's this herbalist who I swear is gay, but apparently he and Twilmer have something going on. Then there's a tamer, the one I've submitted notes on as the Play Boy Bunneary, who could be a n00b, but she's a pretty decent tamer. Than there's Aura..." Drix trailed off. He felt Luna's glare on him, but he ignored it.

"Aura?" he heard several gasp around the table. Aura's reputation preceded her, apparently. Serena held up her hand for silence and was immediately obeyed.

"Aura's on her party? You failed to submit notes on this piece of information." Serena's cold blue eyes focused on Drix.

"Yes, I know, but Aura was fully aware I was submitting information to some outside source, I believe. I know she was keeping a close eye on me, so I decided to not submit her name in case she had someone intercepting my messages, which she would be perfectly capable of doing. She has the largest array of contacts I've ever seen, though I could probably take her. She has never once beaten me in a fight." Drix leaned back arrogantly in his chair.

"You also forget to mention that you've never beaten her either," Luna shot back causing Drix to nearly fall out of his chair. "I bet you just wanted to tell us this information yourself because you're so arrogant. Or," Luna looked thoughtful, and then grinned evilly, "you wanted to protect her because you have feelings for her."

"That is going too far," Drix frowned at Luna, hand traveling down to the hilt of his sword.

"Peace," Serena said, slightly bored.

"If you ask me, it sounds like Luna has a small liking for Drix," Ziac put a hand to his chin with a grin, "What's that old saying? You always hurt the ones you love."

"Shut up before my darts make you shut up," Luna growled, placing a hand on her blow pipe. Ziac held up his hands for peace and cleared his throat.

"Peace," Serena said once again, holding up her hand. "I am disappointed that you didn't relay this information, but you had your reasons, as idiotic as they were. Anyways, the reason we are gathered here today is that the two intractable have been spotted together by one of our members traveling to Firewall where the glitch is located. I don't like the idea of those two anywhere together let alone where the glitch is located. Maple and I have researched a few options as to why she is near the glitch. I believe we both found that Arceus being there has no bearings on anything, but Dream is a problem."

Maple stood and cleared his throat, "Yes, well, we figured Twilmer would probably have to go back to Firewall to fix that glitch. As we all know, Dream and Twilmer are as opposite as two people can get except for the fact that both of them share an unnatural affinity for this game. If Dream is waiting at Firewall for Twilmer, than nothing good can come of the situation, plus our own personal interests in Twilmer will be down the toilet."

"That is where you come in, Drix." Serena turned her eyes to him. "We can't have Twilmer avoiding Firewall altogether because she won't do it as she's very self reliant, and Dream will find a way to get to her no matter what. We need you to make sure that she goes to Firewall after she'd done with PWO Corp. It's not that far away and I believe you can make it seem like the next logical course of action quite easily."

"Can do," Drix saluted.

"There's a lot more information to go over; however I must cut this meeting short as I have to go to work. If anyone has any questions, Xate has the meeting minutes and Maple's and my notes." Serena stood, as did the other eight. They bowed to her as she and her Roserade disappeared.

"Well, that didn't take as long as I thought. Twilmer can't possibly have messed anything up in this short amount of time, can she?" Drix stood to leave and jumped aside as another flurry of darts flew past him.

"Damn you, Drix!" Luna shouted, brushing past him and out the door.

"What's with her?" Drix wondered aloud. Shi, Sho, and their Kirlia waved before teleporting out of the room. Xate walked silently from the room with a stack of papers.

"Love, mate. She loves you," Ziac joked before leaving with Midget.

"Sorry, but I've already got my mind set on someone," Drix thought to himself as he left the meeting room, Maple beside him.

ooo

End Part 21

Short, but there wasn't much to it except explaining a few things and tying plot together. Alright, this is the last of the filler parts. Next one will continue where I left off three parts ago.


	22. PWO Corp's Secret part 2

Pokémon World Online

Part 22: PWO Corp's Secret Part 2

Disclaimer: ZOMG, I'm actually getting back to this plot point XD I've been spitting out parts lately, so no complaining XD yep, I should be writing an essay, but I don't feel like it. Anyways, I don't own the normal things and as for this, I don't own Satoshi Tajiri. He owns himself. I also don't own Leslie Swan. She also owns herself. It feels so good to write about Twilmer again. I missed her. Holy cow, 22 parts o.O longest fic I've ever written/stuck with. Some of these ideas come from the RP and aren't owned by me either. Speaking of which, if anyone wants to see what the charas look like, Moya has kindly drawn Twilmer and Emily for me. She also has drawn her own chara Aura. Go check them out and let her know what you think.

Her DA name is: Moya-no-baka so go there.

Alright, now time for the part to begin. This part is dedicated to the mysterious smell coming from my roommate's side of our dorm.

ooo

"Damn it, there's too many of them," Aura growled through clenched teeth, deflecting several bullets with her twin katanas. Trellaine was trying to keep a barrier around them, but the constant barrage of bullets made it difficult to maintain. Aura wished that the idiotic defender was still with them as he would have been a great help at the moment. A bullet flew at Aura and before she could move, it l hit her arm. It was mostly still sticking out of her skin. She grabbed it lightly with two of her long, flexible fingers and pulled it out. Her arm was burning in pain and she wouldn't have a chance to access her inventory to cure it. Oh well, she had been in worse situations before. "I hate this place," Aura hissed, dodging another round of shots.

"I'm scared," Emily23 whimpered. She cowered behind Trellaine. Luckily his barrier had protected her thus. She held Bunneary close to her. She was shielding her eyes with her long ears and shivering slightly. Emily23 hugged her close.

Helium moved silently and threw powders about the room, stunning and harming some of the suits; however no matter how many fell, more came to take their spots. The party couldn't keep this up much longer.

ooo

Twilmer sat in the elevator, panting heavily; Victoria standing protectively next to her. Twilmer watched the numbers flashing over her in a daze. What was going on? She refused to believe that PWO Corp had something to do with this. The suit system must have had a malfunction or something like that. Though, as she neared the top floor, she couldn't help remembering a conversation she and Aura had had the previous day...

ooo

"So we're going to PWO Corp, right?" Aura asked. Twilmer nodded, slightly out of breath from having to traverse the rough terrain on stubby little Pichu feet. "I almost forgot how much a hate that place," Aura muttered under her breath, however Twilmer's sensitive Pichu ears caught what she said.

Twilmer went to respond to her comment when another idea popped into her head. "Why did you do what you did?"

"What do you mean?" Aura asked.

"Stepped out from the Top Ten, I mean." The Admin crossed her little arms as she wondered aloud. "I thought that every player's ultimate goal is to be in the Ten and maybe you were there before I became an Admin, but I am pretty sure that goal didn't change much."

"Suits annoyed me." Aura rolled her eyes. "Once you enter the Ten you are under constant surveillance. They even meddle in your private life."

"They do?" Now that was something new for Twilmer. She was, of course, under the PWO Corp. paycheck, but they never really tried to interfere with her real life... did they?

"Unfortunately." Aura kicked a small rock in front of her as they continued walking. "And I have my reasons to protect my private life."

"What, you're a serial killer there or what?" Twilmer jumped again over small hole in ground.

"No, I just..." The woman trailed off. "Nevermind."

ooo

The elevator finally stopped and Twilmer stepped off at the top floor. It was quiet up here and the hallway was dimly lit. Twilmer walked along cautiously and reverently. Twilmer wasn't a very religious person, but this is how she imagined it would feel to enter a church. She walked to Satoshi's office door, Dragonite statues on either side, and knocked. She heard muffled footsteps and then the door opened. "Hello?" a woman with long blonde hair and strong features asked, looking around. Twilmer gasped at being in such close proximity to Leslie Swan. She was a member of Satoshi's seven. Her job was to translate text and then localize the marketing options so that PWO could reach the entire world. At the sound of Twilmer's gasp, she looked down and frowned. "What are you doing here? I thought you had been deleted.

"What?" Twilmer's ears drooped as she looked up at Leslie Swan. Victoria growled beside her and held up her claws.

Ms. Swan laughed, "Oh don't tell me you're Pokémon is trying to challenge me. I'm sorry, but my Blissey could kill that Weavile."

"Victoria, stand down," Twilmer ordered. Victoria glared at her, but obeyed, retracting her claws and stepping back. "What do you mean you thought I had been deleted? Why in the world would I have been deleted?"

"Because you're image is bad for the company, sorry doll face. Our logo says that our game does not retract from real life and with you playing this game non-stop, well, we can't be too careful, especially with the large market we appeal to." Leslie went to close the door; however Weavile lunged forward, preventing the door form being closed. "Idiotic little pest," she frowned.

"I came to see Satoshi. He told me to go fix the glitch and when I come back to report to him I've found a party to help, his suits attack me!" Twilmer shouted, her voice booming despite her small stature. Ms. Swan made to grab Twilmer; however she used her small size to her advantage and quickly darted between her legs and into Satoshi's office. Unfortunately, Victoria was not so lucky and Ms. Swan managed to shut the door before the Weavile could join her partner; however this fact went unnoticed to Twilmer as she walked over to Satoshi's desk. "Mr. Tajiri?" she cautioned.

Satoshi was sitting in his desk chair, which was facing away from Twilmer. "Hello there, Miss Admin. It is a pleasure to see you." He turned and smiled sincerely at Twilmer, though she couldn't shake off the feeling that something wasn't quite right. She ignored the feeling and bowed humbly. "I'm sorry for the way my suits are treating you, but they are only simple programs and are easily glitched." Twilmer's ears perked up and she smiled in relief. "I mean after all, you are just a small Pichu with a party of n00bs. It shouldn't take this many." Twilmer's heart dropped and she instinctually jumped back, obeying the Pichu instincts that were becoming written into her character code. It was a good thing she did as a Poliwhirl fired an ice beam where she had been standing.

There was a crash and Twilmer turned to see Victoria bursting through the door in a shower of wood chips. Leslie Swan cursed behind her and ran into the room, whistling to call her Blissey to her side. "Four against two; you need to give up."

Twilmer's ears drooped and she looked around. Indeed, the situation was looking hopeless. "Why?" Twilmer squeaked, looking from Ms. Swan to Mr. Tajiri. She didn't understand how two of her models that she had held in such high regards could turn on her.

"I already told you, if you would listen. You're bad for our company's image." Leslie sneered, Blissey trying to stare Victoria down.

"Twilmer, you weren't supposed to make it back from firewall. We figured that the glitch would take care of your character so that you'd have to log out. You see, PWO Corp can't delete a gamer that's logged in. You, my dear, have been logged in for well over 8 months now, but it's more than just a bad image because image isn't everything. Oh it's so much more." Satoshi stepped back, patting his Poliwhirl on the head. "She wants me to eradicate you so that my dear friends can become real. For them to become completely real, she needs me."

"Who are you talking about?" Twilmer asked, backing up so that she and Victoria were standing back to back.

"Yeah, who are you talking about? As one of your seven, I feel I have the right to know." Leslie Swan narrowed her eyes at Satoshi.

"That is none of your concern." Satoshi waved his hand and at his side a Mewtwo stepped out of the shadows. "Finish them." Satoshi sat back down in his chair and watched as Mewtwo fired a blast of psychic energy. Victoria took the attack since it wouldn't effect her and landed gracefully beside Twilmer with a grin.

"This shouldn't be too hard," Twilmer smirked, cheeks crackling with static electricity.

ooo

Aura looked around and cursed. They had taken care of most of the suits, but they were also badly injured, especially the young tamer. Aura used a Point Smash attack to take care of the last suit she saw and ran over to Emily23. "Are you okay?" Aura asked, kneeling down beside her. The Tamer was lying on the ground covered in scratches and her outfit was badly torn. Her Bunneary didn't look in any better shape.

"Aura, why did they attack us? Why did they attack Twilmer? Aren't these her friends?" Emily23 coughed, her breathing terribly labored.

"Don't say anything more. Drink this." Aura handed Emily23 a potion, which she held limply in her hand, too weak to bring the bottle to her lips. Emily23 really hadn't done any attacking and had simply taken the attacks that fell her way. Aura pulled Emily23 into a sitting position and forced her to drink the potion. "These suits aren't friends to anyone. They are simple programs that follow simple orders no matter what they are." Emily23 swallowed and smiled, closing her eyes. The scratches were fading and her HP was restored, but she was still very tired. Aura sighed and helped her to her feet. "Damn suits."

Helium frowned and walked over to Aura without a word. Trellaine teleported beside them. "Why do you feel the need to teleport where you easily could've walked with a few steps?" Aura complained.

"To annoy you," Trellaine grinned, then frowned as he looked at Emily23. "We shouldn't have brought a gamer of such a low level here."

"It's fine," Emily23 tried to push Aura away, but stumbled and Aura caught her again with a scowl, "I mean, I wanted to come. I need to learn how to get stronger both in the game and in real life." This time, Emily23 stood on her own and gave the party a confident nod.

"Now let's make sure Twilmer hasn't killed herself," Aura smirked.

"Yeah," something seemed to snap in Helium, breaking him out of the mood he had been in. Together the group ran to the elevator and waited for it to take them to the top.

ooo

Twilmer dodged a solar beam that Mewtwo had shot her way, taking surprisingly little attack load time. Victoria ran over and used a night slash, causing Mewtwo to stumble off balance; however he looked more angered than hurt. Victoria looked rather proud of herself and was too busy reveling in the fact that she had knocked Mewtwo over to block his next attack. Mewtwo used a shadow ball to throw Victoria across the room. Before Victoria could stand, Mewtwo used a flamethrower. Victoria leaned against the wall, panting and not able to get up. "Check," Satoshi grinned, "and I have just one last move to go before I have cornered the king."

Twilmer's ears drooped, however she quickly retaliated with a thunderbolt. Mewtwo simply blocked the attack with a barrier and sneered down at the tiny admin. "My strength lies in my speed. I wonder if I can tire Mewtwo out," Twilmer pondered to herself. Mewtwo fired a psybeam and Twilmer easily dodged the attack. She was small and was thus a harder to hit target. She dodged several attacks easily and then got another idea. She dodged as she ran towards Satoshi's desk, however Satoshi noticed her plan. He called forth a Poliwhirl which grabbed Twilmer and held her down.

"Don't try to overcome me. I have all the programs under my control." Satoshi pushed a button and Victoria got to her feet. She walked over to Twilmer shakily. "Let's see how your little glitched friend fares under my control." Twilmer's eyes widened as Victoria raised her claws. Twilmer was too surprised to try and get away. Victoria raised her claws and brought it down. Twilmer closed her eyes shut as hard as she could, waiting for the pain, however it didn't come. She chanced a look and saw Victoria struggling. With a shout, Victoria broke free and jumped back, panting and kneeling. "What!" Satoshi shouted in fury and in fear. Why weren't his programs obeying him?

Twilmer took this opportunity to shock the Poliwhirl and break free. "So what Dream said is true. Pokémon are becoming real. Why else would a program disobey you?" Twilmer pulled out a potion and took a swig, tossing the rest to Victoria. After finishing the bottle, she tossed it aside and jumped beside her partner. The two charged forward, however they had forgotten Mewtwo, who let loose a flurry of attacks knocking both to the ground.

"It matters little what is program and what is real when I have you cornered like the rat you've become." Satoshi stood up and walked over to Twilmer, who was being held down by a psychic from Mewtwo. Victoria tried to run over, however Satoshi pulled out a sword and pointed it at Twilmer. "One false move and your partner gets it."

"One false move and you get it!" Twilmer's ears perked up as she recognized the voice. Satoshi faltered and looked around as a flurry of powder entered the room, stunning Mewtwo. Twilmer jumped away and beside Victoria. Satoshi was holding his cloak over his nose to avoid the powder. Helium stepped into view, holding a bag of powder; Vileplume beside him. The party members Twilmer had gathered stood before her, ready to fight.

"Allow me, Satoshi," Leslie Swan bowed. "Come on Blissey!" Leslie pulled out her diamond encrusted daggers and smirked at the members gathered before her. "As an item hunter, I've found quite a lot of items that will even these odds. For example," Quick as a flash, Leslie threw a sticky substance which pinned Emily23, Bunneary, Sparia, and Trellaine to the ground. Haunter floated next to his partner with a worried look on his usually mischievous face.

"Oh you bitch," Aura pulled out her twin katanas and pointed them at Leslie.

Leslie threw back her head and laughed. "Oh please. A coward like you can never even hope to beat me. I mean you ran away from the top ten after that whore of yours died. If you ask me, she's better off without you. You'll always be running and nev-" Before Leslie could finish her sentence, Aura had quickly ran both of her Katanas through Leslie's body. Leslie's surprised expression remained as she fell to the ground, dead. Blissey looked up at Aura's murderous look and ran from the room, however she didn't make it far before Aura had thrown a katana at the pink Pokémon.

"NO!" Twilmer shouted, Victoria leaping and knocking the katana to the ground. "The Pokémon are real. We can't kill them."

Aura was panting heavily. Her pants turned to choked sobs as she fell to the floor. "Aura," Emily23 cried. Helium used a powder to release them from the sticky substance Leslie had spread on them. Emily23 ran forward and fell to her knees beside Aura, throwing her arms around the sobbing woman. Aura didn't knock her away and simply leaned into Emily23's embrace.

"I suppose my top seven should now be my top six. It is not only the data of the Pokémon that is becoming real, but people as well. Think about that, you little murderer," Satoshi smirked. The group simply stood where they were, not sure what to do next. Satoshi typed on his keyboard and pressed a button with a grin. "Every gamer now knows that your party attacked PWO Corp, Twilmer. That means every gamer will now be your enemy. Try accomplishing anything with those circumstances on your head." Satoshi smirked as his suits entered the room. "Hopefully I won't see any of you again." Satoshi walked from the room and disappeared from sight.

"We can't do this again! What do we do, Miss Pichu?" Emily23 asked, looking to Twilmer.

"I honestly don't know." Twilmer's ears drooped and she looked around at the suits that had surrounded them, guns out and cocked. Suddenly a loud roar made the windows shake. Twilmer turned to see a Salamance burst through the window. "Drix!" Twilmer shouted. She had never been so glad to see the swordsman before in her life. The suits looked surprised to see the swordsman there and some even dropped their weapons.

"I'm gone for a few hours and you manage to get yourself almost killed." Drix shook his head. "Let's get out of here!" Twilmer and Victoria hopped onto Salamance's back. The rest of the party made their way over there slowly, Emily23 sticking close to Aura.

"I'll simple follow you using teleport. Your Salamance looks loaded down enough already," Trellaine suggested. Drix nodded as Salamance took off, the suits fire missed as they flew away; Salamance straining under the weight of the amount of people and Pokémon on her back. They landed in a clearing far enough from PWO Corp not to be noticed. The mood of the party was grim and the weather wasn't helping matters much as grey clouds rolled overhead, thunder rumbling.

"It appears our accounts have been locked," Trellaine mused as he typed away. "If we log out, our characters will be deleted. And yes, Twilmer, I am hacking to discover this information."

"You know what? I don't even care anymore." Twilmer was curled into a little ball of fuzzy yellow fur and looked as if she wanted nothing more than to discover that she had just woken from a terrible dream.

"What did I miss?" Drix asked, taking special notice at Aura's terrible state.

"It was all a lie," Twilmer muttered, curling into a tighter ball. Her hero, Satoshi, had turned out to not be who she thought he was. She had always had a problem with hero worship and now this fact was weighing heavily on her. The life she had been living for well over eight months now was crashing down around her.

OoOoO

End Part 22

OoOoO

Plot has started. No more fun and games for our group, well, maybe not completely. Enjoy and review please.


	23. For the Love of the Game

Pokémon World Online

Part 23: For the Love of the Game

ooo

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon or half the characters in this fic. I'm having so much fun writing this and I can't believe I've stuck with it for so long. I plan on seeing it to the end, so don't worry. I dedicate this part to the real Leslie Swan in an apology for killing her off. You're a great localization manager, Miss Swan!

ooo

"What can we do? Everyone has been informed to destroy us and we can't log out. Just what the hell are we supposed to do?" Aura asked, her arms crossed tightly over her blue swirled vest and green top. She was pacing back and forth agitatedly. Sparia became uneasy watching her partner and shifted uneasily.

"Correction," Drix held up a finger as an idea hit him, "you guys have this hanging over you. I'm not included in this. Look," Drix opened his PWO Mail and showed them the email he had been sent demanding the capture of Twilmer's party. Drix smirked as he looked down at the others.

"So? What does it mat-wait. We can use this to our advantage." Aura held her chin in thought. "First things first; we need supplies and possibly a place to stay while we recover. Is there any way you can find us a place to stay in Greensboro? We're close by," Aura said, looking over in the direction the town was. It was the closest to PWO Corp and the first place they would look for them, but it was better than camping out in their state.

"I suppose I can go look," Drix mounted Salamance, "for you." With that, Drix took off leaving a slightly flustered Aura below him.

"What was that about?" Emily23 asked, bouncing over to Aura, Bunneary following her.

"That's what I would like to know," Aura admitted. Aura was surprised at how much the young tamer had grown on her since when she first met her. At first, Emily23 had been an annoying n00b and now Aura found herself wanting to protect her from any harm.

"Well, I think that I might as well stay for a little bit longer as I'm a fugitive as well," Trellaine decided, sitting on the ground. "At least for the time being. I am a very important man. In the mean time, orange?" He offered, holding the orange fruit up. Aura and Emily23 couldn't help but utter a small laugh, however Aura's was short lived as she remembered the horrible deeds now on her head.

"Hey Twilmer," Helium called, crawling over beside Twilmer, who was still curled in a tight ball; Victoria standing watchfully over her partner.

"Go away," Twilmer muttered, rolling over so that she faced away from him.

"Twilmer, I'm sorry if I was cold to you earlier. I had an exceptionally terrible morning and I know it's no excuse, but can you forgive me?" Helium asked, sliding closer to the tiny ball of yellow fur.

Twilmer sat up slightly and looked hard at Helium. "You don't have to apologize. Everyone has bad mornings every once in awhile. Why do you feel the need to apologize?" Twilmer stared the poor pink-robed herbalist down. She didn't know why his comment had annoyed her. Perhaps it was because she had no idea what to think anymore.

"Well," Helium figured it was now or never. He looked over at Twilmer who looked confused at his pause. He smiled and took a deep breath. "I love you." Helium blushed as the words left his mouth.

Twilmer felt her blood run cold. That had been exactly the line her ex-boyfriend, Derek had said to her and nothing good had come from it. "Helium, don't, please," Twilmer sighed, tears coming to her eyes. Helium looked up and frowned, feeling his heart drop slightly. "I've never had good consequences with that word, love." Twilmer had so many sarcastic remarks she could make to scare him away, like she had with the few guys before him, but she found herself not wanting to scare Helium away. "I feel strongly for you," Twilmer sighed, the truth coming out at last, "but I don't think I can handle anything that has to do with a relationship."

Helium found himself feeling really bad for Twilmer. He had caught a glimpse of the boy Derek Twilmer was mentioning when they had encountered Dream. Helium smiled and quickly began petting her head. Twilmer found herself purring despite her better judgment. "It's okay. If you ever change your mind, I'll be here for you. I'll never leave you."

"Thanks for understanding," Twilmer smiled, and then batted his hand away. "Now stop petting me like I'm some kind of animal." She grumped; stomping away with a slight smile on her face. Helium shook his head and stood up following her back to the group.

ooo

Drix arrived back with a smirk around an hour later. Aura eyed him warily, not liking the look he was giving the group. "I found a nice place for us to stay and I already paid the man for our room. He says he'll ask no questions so long as we don't cause trouble," Drix shot a look at Twilmer who shrugged innocently, "though I doubt he will keep quiet if he knows I'm bringing fugitives."

"So we're back to not having a plan, aren't we?" Twilmer's ears drooped.

"I didn't say that. We can get to the hotel just fine. Hey, Trellaine, how good are you at cloaking spells?" Drix asked the mage.

"Better than a cold glass of water on a hot summer day," Trellaine smirked. Twilmer rolled her eyes knowing that this meant more hacking. Old habits die hard with her as she had to bite her tongue to refrain from upping his warning level.

"I doubt Salamance can handle the weight of all of you again, so if you could teleport the Pokémon there, that'd help greatly." Drix looked down at the mage, who nodded.

"Alright, let's go," Twilmer went to jump on Salamance's back, however Drix stopped her. "You dare stop me?" She glared at him, sparks flying from her little pink cheeks.

"You're a Pokémon," Drix snorted; amused by the look Twilmer was giving him.

"No. No way." Twilmer protested. "I weigh like a pound. Surely your Salamance isn't so weak that it can't handle a little Pichu along for the ride as well," Twilmer smirked knowing full well that the taunt would work on Drix. She climbed on Salamance's back and was soon off. Trellaine had been given instructions to the building so he could teleport there more accurately. As they were flying over the tip of Greensboro, Twilmer began to feel slightly faint. She closed her eyes as an image of Dream touching the glitch crossed her mind. She opened her eyes and saw nothing except red as she tumbled form Salamance's back.

"Twilmer!" Aura shouted. She was the first to see the tiny admin slip off of Salamance's back.

"Shit," Drix cursed as he sent Salamance into a nosedive. Twilmer gained consciousness in time to see the ground rushing up to meet her. She closed her eyes promptly and prepared for impact; however she felt something soft under her instead. She opened her eyes to see Helium smiling at her. Twilmer nearly melted in relief. "What was that about?" Drix demanded.

"I saw Dream touching the glitch at Firewall, and then everything went red." Twilmer looked to her right where she could see the faint outline of Firewall in the distance. "I wonder what that means..."

ooo

Twilmer and the others arrived without further problems in the room Drix had rented. The party settled down on the two beds and three chairs in the room. Twilmer was curled on top of the table, Victoria sitting beside her. Aura sat on the same bed as Emily23, stroking the feathers of Sparia. Bunneary sighed, leaning against Emily23's side. She smiled down at the small rabbit and put an arm around her, keeping her close. Bunneary soon drifted off to sleep. Helium sat in a chair near Twilmer, though she didn't seem to notice, and Trellaine was in the chair opposite him; Haunter flying over head. Max was curled on the bed with Drix and Salamance. Vileplume sat in the middle of the rug sniffing the air around them.

"Hmm, Twilmer, I just ran a scan of all of our character data to see the extent of Satoshi's work and I found something very interesting with yours. Take a look," Trellaine showed Twilmer his data screen; however she was unable to make much sense of the figures. "That flash you saw was a transfer of data. You said you saw Dream touching the glitch, correct?" Twilmer nodded. "It appears that she has transferred the glitches data into you."

"Wait, she did what?" Twilmer stood up, looking shocked.

"She transferred the glitch data to you, so apparently you are the glitch now." Trellaine looked up at Twilmer with worry in his normally jolly eyes. Helium looked at her as well.

"Isn't that just my luck?" Twilmer frowned. "But if I'm the glitch, then I'm going to have to be destroyed, or my character is, which is the same thing if this whole 'turning PWO corp. real' thing is accurate, right?"

"This has to do with my studies on the fourth protocol. Twilmer, my dear, this could mean death or something related." Trellaine looked at her with concern.

"Death? How could anyone die from playing a video game?" Drix snorted.

"That confuses me too, but it doesn't matter. So she made me the glitch, eh? She probably doesn't know we know that yet, with the help of our little hacker. Anyways, PWO Corp is still ignoring the place and regular gamers are staying away from it, so what safer place for us to go than Firewall? Plus we can possibly take care of Dream while we're there and remove the glitch." Twilmer looked proud of herself to have come to that conclusion.

Trellaine did a quick data scan, "Firewall mountain is still blocked from access."

"Exactly!" Twilmer snapped her tiny Pichu fingers. "So, after we all have a decent rest, we'll go head to firewall mountain. This is where all of this began, anyways, so maybe we can end it there."

"Or become more screwed then we are currently," Drix muttered.

"If that's possible," Emily23 commented.

The party looked worse for wear as each became lost in their own thoughts and none of them said much more as thunder rolled over head and rain began to beat against the window. "This is depressing," Trellaine sighed, looking out at the wet streets.

"Of course it's depressing. We can't log out or else we're gone, all of PWO Corp is out to get us, and I think I just murdered someone." Aura ran a hand through her raven colored hair with a sigh. Emily23 looked over at Aura sadly, keeping her protective arm around Bunneary.

"You know, speaking of which, my mom would usually have yelled at me to get off by now," Emily23 said more to herself than the others. "I have band practice in three days. I can't stay on this game forever. What if I forget my drill or my routine?"

"I have to go to the Soccer game this Friday or else Jason will completely destroy my laptop," Helium sighed, watching Vileplume pick at the threadbare carpet.

"I have a design I need to start working on...eventually," a small smirk crossed Aura's lips.

"I don't have any pressing matter to attend to, actually," Twilmer said thoughtfully, and then the thought of possibly not being an admin anymore sent a cold chill down her small spine.

"Of course you don't. Your life is this game. For your information, others have a life outside of this. Maybe you should get one," Drix snapped, causing Twilmer to spark dangerously.

Aura shot him a dirty look. "Look, I know we're all tired, but that's no excuse to be rude. Hold your tongue."

"Make me," Drix shot back immaturely.

"I'd be glad to," Aura unlocked her katanas as Drix pulled his own sword from its sheath.

"Oh yes, since we can't log out, let's make the best of our time with a petty argument," Trellaine scowled at the two.

"I must agree. With that said, please stop this fighting, it's not solving anything and it's...pissing...me off." Twilmer liked the way the curse word tickled her tongue.

"You cussed," Aura smirked. "Our Little Twilmer's all grown up." Twilmer sparked dangerously, but Aura waved it away.

"Whatever," Drix threw down his sword and walked away from Aura. Victoria (the Weavile) gave a Drix a very rude gesture with her middle claw. "Do that again and see what happens to that claw," Drix hissed dangerously.

"No one threatens my partner," Twilmer jumped in front of Drix and her checks sparked with static electricity. "Do that again and I'll show you what a grace master can do."

"Grace master? You're a Pichu, or did you forget?" Drix looked at her, slightly amused.

Twilmer opened her mouth, but before she could say anything, the wall splintered on the room of the inn. A very ticked off seven member stood there. "Mr. Ken Sugimori," Twilmer said in awe, but then remembered that the PWO corp. was hunting them.

"It seems I've found your little hiding spot." He snickered, calling a Ninetails to his side.

"Fight," Drix picked up his sword.

"Run!" Twilmer screamed.

"I can take this punk," Drix pointed his sword at the seven member.

"You deaf little --" Twilmer shouted.

"Wow, I don't think I've even said that before," Aura said, amused, but that didn't last long. She looked from Twilmer to Drix. What was the party to do?

Before any of them could act, Max stood up and slipped off of the bed. He then fired a hydro pump at the Ninetails. Ken Sugimori looked taken back as Max did not let up on the attack for quite some time. When he finally did, Ninetails was fainted. Max yawned and began to glow. The party looked on surprised as Max evolved into Slowbro. "Max!" Emily23 shouted in happiness, running to the side of her first tamed Pokémon, giving him a huge hug. Max looked pleased with himself.

"This is nice and all, but I will make that useless lump of pink pay for what he has done." Ken Sugimori pulled out a sword shaped like a paint brush and rushed forward. Emily23 didn't hesitate for an instant as she quickly countered the attack with her taming pole.

"Don't you touch him!" She shouted, spinning and jabbing the blunt end of her staff as hard as she could into his stomach. Mr. Sugimori fell over, gagging.

"Way to go," Aura and Drix applauded, looking surprised at the tamer, who blushed and put a hand behind her head.

"Hey, it's that party!" a shout came from outside the inn.

"Damn it, we've been discovered," Drix cursed.

"Wait, I think I still have the keystone I used to teleport to Firewall the first time with me. It should still take us there." Twilmer searched through her inventory as footsteps grew louder outside the inn.

"Hurry," Drix hissed. Helium shot him a dirty look, which amused Drix.

"Got it! Everyone grab a hold of me. We're teleporting out of this dump before Mr. Sugimori is able to get to his feet and those gamers catch us." Twilmer waited until everyone, Pokémon and human, had a grip on her before activating the keystone. The group vanished just as a group of gamers was gaining on them.

ooo

End Part 23

One day. I wrote that in one friggen day. Oi! o.O


	24. Fury of the Pheonix

Pokémon World Online

Part 24: Fury of the Phoenix

Disclaimer: I don't own blah blah, after 23 parts, you know what I do and don't own. I realized the last fic I had I only kept up with until around part 7 or something. This one is my current longest part wise and it amazes me that I am still interested in finishing the story for this. A big thanks to those who have stuck by me for so long. I hope you will stick with me until I finish this fic. The thought of finishing is saddening to me. I think I am officially at the halfway mark plot wise (not part wise). This part is dedicated to all of those who read but don't review. I appreciate the fact that you even take the time to read my work - it means a lot to me. I love comments as much as the next person, but I appreciate those who even take their time to read this. For your dedication, this part is dedicated to you.

Yes I'm being very emotional and mushy over a fanfic. I'm attached to it so nyah X3

One thing, JK Rowling stole my idea! I had the idea for this glitch thing and what would happen because of it planned out for nearly a year now before HP7 ever stepped onto the scene. I am not copying her, she is copying me dag nabbit.

ooo

Twilmer and the others landed gently on the ground. "Okay everyone, let go of me," she growled as they all had to have a hold on her for a successful teleportation. When everyone let go, Twilmer blanched at the state of her fur. She looked as if she had just woken up after a long sleep. With a sigh, she began to clean herself like a normal Pichu would with her tongue. She then noticed eyes on her and what she was doing. "Darn it! Stupid Pichu instincts," she yelled, stomping off. She looked around at the mountains around her.

Firewall was a barren landscape surrounded by mountains. The middle was flat where the final battle with Ho-oh was supposed to take place and off to the left was the large volcanic mountain Firewall was named for. The entire party looked on in awe at the landscape, which was beautiful in a dangerous and haunting way. Twilmer's eyes then landed on the glitch, or what had been the glitch. If what Trellaine had said was true, which knowing him and his coding skills it probably was, and then Dream had transferred the glitch to Twilmer, thus making Twilmer the glitch. It had been Twilmer's goal to destroy this glitch these past few months and now she was here, but it felt rather empty. She had lost so much for this assignment and it would truly serve PWO Corp right if she were to abandon the mission or even use the glitch within her to meddle with the main frame, however she knew she could never do that. Over the last year, PWO had become her home.

"So what do we do now, Miss Admin?" Aura asked, looking down at Twilmer. "This was your idea, so I figure you must have a plan."

"Well, actually, I just figured we'd go examine what's left of the former glitch and then kick Dream's...ass...if she shows up." Twilmer smiled, still enjoying the feel curses had on her tongue. Though it still bother her how PWO's censors seemed to be failing.

"Sounds like more of a plan then we've had in our recent situations. I'm game," Aura smiled at Twilmer who blushed.

"I'm with you, Miss Pichu!" Emily23 smiled and bounced up, Bunneary mimicking her. Max yawned and nodded.

"You know I'll never leave you," Helium commented quietly causing Twilmer's stomach to do a flip-flop. She smiled up at him.

"If it involves kicking ass, then I'm in." Drix fiddled with the hilt of his sword.

"I may not be sticking with you for much longer, but while I'm here, my services are to you, Twilmer." Trellaine bowed.

"Alright, then let's go!" Twilmer shouted and the group began to make their way down the hill they had landed on as fast as they could. Twilmer was surprised to see that Max was having an easier time keeping up with them since he had evolved. Usually he would fall asleep and they would just leave him since he was able to appear where Emily23 was whenever she logged back in. She was annoyed by the Slowpoke at first, but after he had taken down Ken Sugimori's Ninetails, she felt much more gratitude toward the pink Pokémon.

They were near the glitch when the ground began to quake beneath them. Luckily, it was a small tremor which quickly subsided; however, as Firewall was an active volcano, it was a cause of concern. "Let's keep going," Twilmer commanded. They kept running forward, their goal in sight and growing larger as they made their way closer. The Ho-oh guardian of the area flew down towards them, landing beside them and nodded, bowing to them. Twilmer looked up at the large, majestic phoenix and a sense of awe overcame her, however something was bothering her... "Ho-oh isn't programmed to approach gamers like that," she mused.

"After everything we've been through, you still wonder why weird things are happening." Drix looked at her incredulously. "That Ho-oh must be real or something. I don't really get what's going on, to be honest."

Twilmer pondered this statement as she heard a low chiming sound. She turned around, but couldn't see anything near her. She perked her ears up and listened as hard as she could, but even with the strong hearing of a Pichu, she couldn't catch the sound again. "What's wrong?" Aura asked.

"Nothing, I just thought I heard something," Twilmer mumbled, still looking around.

"This place is so big," Emily mused as she looked around, taking in the Ho-oh beside them and the mountains beyond. "It didn't look so big when we first got here, but we've been walking for awhile now and are just nearing the glitch." Helium nodded in agreement, looking around amazed.

"You're just easily amused," Drix shrugged. Nothing ever amazed him anymore.

"Bah, I've seen better programming in lower level areas," Trellaine said as he teleported beside the party.

"Though mainly that's because you changed the coding to make them better. For some reason, PWO Corp enjoyed it when you did that since it saved them the task of upgrading. You're such a hacker," Twilmer accused as she rolled her eyes.

"I've told you before, Miss Admin, that I do not hack. I simply do my job very well and take certain liberties I feel are owed to me," Trellaine explained. Twilmer rolled her eyes again. She had heard his excuses many times before. Aura snorted a laugh at his response. "Did I hear the famous Aura laugh?" Trellaine looked over at her.

"You're hearing things," Aura smiled, loosening the hold she had had on the hilts of her katanas since they entered the area. This moment of happiness was short lived as they approached the huge rift in the center of Firewall. Ho-oh's watchful eyes followed them. "Twilmer, does that stone of yours work again; just in case we need to get out?"

"Let me check." Twilmer pulled out the transporter and examined it. She briefly looked at its coding and sighed. "Now I remember why I had never used this earlier; it was only good for two trips. Since I didn't use it to exit Firewall the last time I was here, I was able to use it to get here again, but there's no power left in it for another trip back. We'll have to walk."

"There's a problem with that," Trellaine looked up from the keypad he had been typing on, "I'm sure you're aware that barriers surround this entire area keeping all gamers from getting in or out without a special stone like yours, Twilmer."

"So we're stuck here?" Drix growled, throwing his arms up in frustration. "Well that's just great."

"If we can figure out how to destroy this rift, we may be able to get out, so let's focus our energy on the task at hand before we worry about getting out of here," Trellaine said as he watched his Haunter circle overhead fondly.

"It seems my dream has come true," Twilmer jerked as she heard a voice-sweet as honey- form behind her. The entire party turned to see Dream grinning devilishly at them.

"You," Trellaine growled. Dream snickered at him, giving him the finger.

"Stuck, are we? It appears as if your dear admin isn't as all-knowing as you first thought her to be." Dream laughed, approaching them. Her looks became less beautiful and more dangerous with each step. Even Drix and Aura took a step from her unconsciously as she got really close to them. Dream's Misdreavous appeared by her side. "Nightmare, transform their dream into a nightmare." Nightmare's eyes glowed, then dream laughed-the sound of a broken wind chime- and the two of them disappeared.

"The hell did she mean by that?" Aura asked, very frustrated. The party looked around, but nothing appeared to have been changed. Then, Twilmer heard the caw of the Ho-oh.

"Intruders must be eliminated," Ho-oh snarled.

"The hell?" Drix jumped out of the way as it dove at him.

"Ah, it seems that Dream has messed with our programming to make us appear to be hackers, so Ho-oh feels the need to eliminate us." Trellaine explained, typing away at his control panel.

"Shit," Twilmer cussed. Aura let a small smile cross her face. It still amused her to hear the admin cuss. "Well, I suppose I'll have to hack into the system and change that, but that could take me awhile. Guys, keep Ho-oh distracted while I fix what Dream has done." The party nodded as Twilmer ran over to the Firewall Mountain's mainframe. She had been in the main frame many times before fixing glitches, so she hoped this time would be easier as she had experience. She was wrong. The many different data streams always confused her. She took a deep breath and began attempting to make sense of all the 1s and 0s.

Aura's swords rattled loudly as she rolled to avoid a spiraling fire attack. She saw Drix attempting to hit the fire bird, but in vain. Legendaries weren't meant to be easy to fight. Aura grumped as she dodged another fire attack. Helping Twilmer was supposed to be about fixing a glitch, not becoming a marked man like those she hunted, or distracting legendary fire birds. Oh well, she had been promised an offer she could not refuse and she was determined to stick it out until the end. Drix nearly got singed again and she frowned. None of their reflexes were in the best shape, especially since they had been given no time to truly rest enough between PWO Corp and now. "Drix, stop being stupid!" She yelled, dodging a fireball. "We are supposed to buy time, not get ourselves killed!"

Drix glared at her as a sacred fire attack flew by him and began to head for Aura. "Aura!" Drix yelled, running over to her, knowing he wouldn't get there in time. Before the attack could hit Aura, a hydro pump blocked the attack. She looked over at Max and Emily23 with a smile.

"You make an excellent tamer," Aura complimented, causing the young tamer to blush. Aura turned to Trellaine, "Can't you fire some spells at that Ho-oh to stop it from attacking us?"

"I can try." Sure enough, the spells slowed Ho-oh down, however they only served to make the fiery phoenix angrier. Once the spells wore off, it unleashed a flurry of strong attacks. Trellaine used his barrier and teleportation skills to protect the party; however his stamina was running low as he leaned against his staff to catch his breath.

"It seems the main frame has frozen, which explains why this area is still frozen, except Ho-oh, because it's not data anymore. Hmm...yep, his data isn't in the main frame anymore, so Dream wasn't lying, though that is an absurd thought," Twilmer muttered nonsense to herself as she worked through the system, pushing aside data of a billion gamers to pinpoint them. She found the data for Trellaine's character first and deleted the "hacker" label from him. Drix was next, then Emily23. The rest, though, she was having trouble locating.

"Maybe it's because those are the characters most intertwined with me," Twilmer mused, but shook her head. "Darn it to Arceus! If only I could find a way to have some quiet, these fire blasts are hard to work with as background noise."

Victoria used a Crush claw to deflect a fireball away from Helium, who hadn't been watching her right side. He turned to thank the Pokémon when he had to dodge another fireball.

Twilmer then heard a chiming sound. She looked around to see if she could find the source, but it was nowhere to be found. She shrugged and continued working, however a calm seemed to fall over her mind and the noises behind her melted into nothingness. She worked at ease on the control panel. As futile as it seemed to try and locate the data now, she knew that she would succeed, though she was not sure how she knew this.

"This reminds me of the 'stop the rampaging Raikou' event from a few months back," Aura muttered, dodging yet another attack form the furious Ho-oh. That event had been arduous, but she had overcome it with ease. Then again, she had been in the best of health back then and she didn't have to worry about a rumbling stomach. Simply thinking about her hunger caused her stomach to emit a loud growl; however there was no way she could get to her kitchen while fighting Ho-oh. She cursed and pulled out her katanas. "Play time is over," she shouted, charging forward and deflecting fireball attacks right back to Ho-oh. The bird stopped its flurry of attacks to dodge and Aura used this chance to jump up and cause some damage. She smirked as she landed next to Sparia. Sparia was taking care of a good deal of the attacks herself, despite her steel type characteristics making her not as strong against fire type attacks as other water types. Victoria watched Sparia warily and tried to match deflections with the penguin Pokémon. Both had a type that made them weak and because of this, the two seemed to be growing closer through their combined efforts.

Helium and Vileplume weren't much help in this battle especially since they were both grass type specialists. Helium took cover behind a rock and tried his best to heal the others with different powders when the time arose. With a screech, the giant bird came swooping down low against the ground, bringing up clouds of dust swirling around it's beautiful wings. Helium used this opportunity to throw a flurry of status inflicting powders on the bird, which seemed to be doing their job as Ho-oh flew drunkenly back into the sky.

Drix suddenly had an idea. Turning around, he ran to Salamence. While he jumped on Aura asked "what are you going to do?"

"Fight Fire with fire." Drix said while took off on Salamence and said to him "Flamethrower Salamence, burn that stupid bird!!"

"Oh, that's brilliant." Aura sneered angrily while gasping for breath as if after a long run. "Just power it up, why don't you?" The Flamethrower did barely any harm to the Ho-Oh, quite the opposite; it seemed to restore some of its energy. "It's a phoenix Pokémon; you expect it to be harmed by fire?"

She ducked another stream of blaze again, cursing under her breath. Drix was no safer in air than he had been on ground. Salamence's charges were in vain, Ho-oh being three times its size hardly felt a thing, and treated Salamence as if it were a fly.

Twilmer was oblivious to the attacks around her until she heard the large flump of a fallen phoenix. Twilmer turned and saw that Ho-oh was poisoned. "Shit," she cursed under her breath. She finished fixing the codes and sealed the database. Twilmer ran over to Ho-oh, who was badly poisoned. "What did you do?"

"It was one of my special powders, I didn't know this would happen," Helium seemed to be a bit freaked at the situation.

"its okay, Ho-oh's a phoenix, meaning it can't die. It'll be reborn as a baby soon, if Pokémon are indeed real. If Pokémon aren't real, then Ho-oh will simply have its data regenerated." Twilmer grinned. This was the ultimate test to see if Pokémon were real or not. Then again, maybe it just referred to only some Pokémon, but that was absurd.

Ho-oh's body disappeared in a flash of fire; the flames blurred Twilmer's vision. When the smoke cleared, Twilmer opened her eyes and gasped at what she saw.

ooo

End Part 24

Cliffhanger :3 next time gets WAY better.


	25. The Ghosts of Firewall

Pokémon World Online

Part 25: The Ghosts of Firewall

Disclaimer: There's not much left I cannot lay claim to. Chapter 24 wasn't supposed to be split, but I opted for the cliffhanger because of midterms. I had so much work to do . so yeah, I decided to go ahead and give you guys an update instead of being lazy. Yes, Moya, this is the part you've been waiting for 8D I may as well dedicate this one to you as well. How many parts are dedicated to you now? And why did I even start dedicating parts? Ack, whatever, enjoy this part :3 Oh yeah, I guess I forgot to mention Trellaine is Chiscringle's creation. I might have already, but I can't be arsed to check.

ooo

The smoke cleared and a small, fuzzy Ho-oh blinked up at the group. Drix's drew his sword and glared at the chick, preparing to strike. Trellaine shook his head, "You idiot, that's not the same Ho-Oh. When a Pokémon regenerates like that, it is totally reborn. Ho-Oh will eventually regain its memories and be allowed to choose its course, but for now, it's just another Pokémon." He went up to the bird and stroked its feathers. The chick trilled in the back of its throat and hopped up on Trellaine's shoulder. Still stroking it, Trellaine sat down and closed his eyes.

"So, judging by the fact that that Ho-oh became reborn as a chick," Drix shoved his sword forcefully into its sheath, "then Pokémon truly are real. That was the final test and, if you ask me, that Ho-oh passed with flying colors." Drix walked over to the Ho-oh chick. It looked up at him inquisitively and cooed softly.

"One thing that I'm confused about is," Trellaine placed a finger to his chin, "is, since Twilmer is a Pichu, does that make her a real Pokémon too?"

The entire party turned and stared at Twilmer. "What? As your party leader and an admin, I demand you to not look at me," Twilmer commanded, though mainly because that same idea had crossed her head before and she was afraid of what the answer might be.

"News flash, you probably aren't an administrator for PWO anymore," Drix smirked.

"What do you mean?" Twilmer looked up at him, tilting her head to the side in a sign of confusion that Aura found oddly adorable.

"Drix, stop," Aura commanded. Drix looked at her and backed up. Aura looked at the admin, or rather former admin, with a sad smile on her face. Somehow she didn't see any good of bursting Twilmer's bubble quite yet. "There's no need to make false assumptions," Aura lied.

"She's going to have to know one day. You can't protect her forever, I mean for crying out loud, she's nineteen," Drix furrowed his brows as he whispered harshly to Aura.

"I know, but now is not the damn time with the glitch so near and Dream in the area," Aura snapped, stalking away from the swordsman. He glared at her and spat on the ground.

"Bitch," he growled under his breath.

ooo

The reborn Ho-oh was apparently free of the hacking influence of Dream and actually for the first time Aura had felt something in shape of respect for her party's skills. With the phoenix chick safely nestled in Trellaine's robe pocket, their group was finally let to rest. After all, they had no idea what to do and their party hadn't gotten proper rest in about a day. "Besides," Aura though to herself, "Dream will find us when she wants."

Soon, the fire was burning brightly, night closing around them like a veil. Pitch-black sky shimmered with stars and soft noises of Hoothoots soared occasionally trough the silence of the night. Aura was half lying, half sitting near the campfire, gently stroking Sparia's feathers, until the Pokémon was nearly lulled to sleep. With fair amount of potions and a bit of food they all seemed a little less pale and tired, but still, the idea of sleep was highly appealing. Aura was peeling off one of Trellaine's ever existent oranges, munching lazily on the soft fruit.

"Not exactly a glorious party, aren't we?" Twilmer stared into the fire, her ears flopped. "My guess is that this isn't what you guys expected. Not like this."

"Nah." Emily23 yawned, stretching on her spot on the patch of grass that wasn't burned by Ho-Oh's attacks by miracle. "We're here for you, you know?"

Twilmer only smiled sadly.

"It's not like I had anything more interesting to do." Aura shrugged.

Helium kept looking at his hands and over at the baby Ho-oh. He had killed the legendary bird with an extremely powerful powder he had concocted from Vileplume's new spores. He had never expected anything like this to happen and he felt extremely guilty. "But I guess I didn't have much of a choice..." He told himself more than anyone else. Taking his eyes off the bird, he stifled a yawn and stretched on the ground before turning towards the rest of the group. "This isn't a game anymore, is it?" he asked, looking over at Trellaine.

"I'm afraid it hasn't been for some time, young lad. Not while we're so involved with Twilmer," Trellaine motioned to the young admin who was busy trying to get the peel off of an orange and then shocked the fruit in frustration, kicking it aside, "because for some reason this poor girl is a marked woman. I'd bet my staff that it has something to do with that blasted Dream."

"Someone has to keep guard and it's not going to be me," Drix grumped, turning over and falling asleep pretty quickly. Aura looked over at him in disapproval while the rest of the party simply shook their heads.

Trellaine looked over at his bonded Pokémon, "Haunter?"

"Haunt?"

"Do you sleep nowadays?"

"Haunter!" The Pokémon replied with indignation.

"Of course, you're a ghost. Fine, keep an eye out." The Pokémon handed him one of its eyes. He pushed it back in and took that as a yes. "If anything approaches that seems threatening, or if the spacial rift starts to look volatile, wake us in the most expedient nonfatal way." He put a mark on Haunter's head, "that's a ward. If anyone tries to take you out before you can wake us, that'll have a very fun effect. Good night, all." Trellaine got comfortable leaning against the rock he had been sitting on. Beside him, the chick nestled beside him providing him with warmth. Helium slept away from the group a bit, needing time to himself to think. He leaned on Vileplume and looked up at the night sky, which was surprisingly beautiful for being one made from simple coding. Twilmer was nestled beside Victoria. Aura slept close to the admin just in case she needed protection. She hated to admit it, but she felt a strong desire to protect the small grace master-turned-Pichu from both emotional and physical pain. She decided not to dwell on the reasons why tonight so she could get some decent sleep. On the other side of Aura, Emily23 and Bunneary were snuggled together in a peaceful sleep.

ooo

The next morning, Twilmer awoke with her stomach grumbling. Struggling to her feet, she noticed that the sun had just started to come up; albeit the sun appeared to have some glitched graphics from where she stood. Perhaps the game was becoming one big glitch. She sighed and grabbed an orange peel abandoned from the night before and started to nibble on it.

It had taken her longer than expected to change everyone's status to normal. Drix had been hardest since he was a top ten. Twilmer didn't even bother to find herself and undo the status; after all she was a glitch.

Twilmer looked over at Victoria and smiled. Her Pokémon was so much like her and vice versa. The two had really grown together through the recent events. Twilmer stifled a yawn as she sat next to Victoria again. The group would soon wake up, but for now, she just wanted to enjoy this little bit of peace.

o

Aura was, in fact, up far before the sunrise. Taking off her black and blue swirled vest and placing it carefully over Sparia's body to warm her up a bit, she walked several meters away from the group. Morning exercise was something she liked to do if she managed to get online by the time of virtual dawn.

She remembered every move perfectly, every single strain of muscle. As she practiced, her katanas were at one with her body, moving gracefully from one battle stance to other, ever so slowly, with inhuman precision. It took her lot of time to learn them by heart, ever since the game was first released and she had trained under the first PWO appointed swords trainer, Grim. He hadn't been the most patient teacher, nor was she the perfect student, but somehow they had managed not to kill each other, which usually was a good sign.

Aura was aware that, after some time, Twilmer and Drix were already up and she could see them observe her. Still, the practice came first and she finished, ignoring their glances. She felt pleasantly refreshed after the exercise.

"Here." Aura handed Twilmer a small flask of pale orange liquid as she made her way to the nearly extinguished campfire. "It's honeydew potion, one sip of it will make you more full then a mouthful of those oranges."

"Thanks," Twilmer took a swig of the juice, and felt energized afterwards. The stuff was indeed better than the peels. "Well, what's on the agenda for today?" Twilmer asked as Victoria woke up, yawning behind her.

"Well, we took care of Ho-oh, and the fact that it came back as a baby and not as regenerated data means that what Dream said is true," Aura commented.

"That bitch, let me at her," Drix growled, sitting up.

"Good morning to you too, sunshine," Emily23 commented, sitting up. Beside her, Bunneary stretched and yawned.

"A new morning," Trellaine commented, watching the glitched sun rise higher into the sky. His Haunter greeted him with a positive report. Trellaine stood and placed the Ho-oh chick on his shoulder. Emily23 giggled and ran over to him, stroking the baby bird's downy feathers.

"Now what?" Twilmer grumped, already bored.

Drix had separated himself a bit from the group and had pulled out his PM device. He had a few messages; however, the one that caught his eye was one from the Underground.

"Drix: Where the hell are you? I know you went to the PWO corp. headquarters, but after that I can't find you anymore on the map. The boss wants more info on this matter and why the party we put you in charge of has suddenly been marked as traitors and what not. Could we possible meet somewhere to exchange some information soon?"

Drix pressed the reply button and started typing. "Well, The only way to meet me is if you can get into Firewall Mountain, which I doubt you can, seeing as how the whole damn area is blocked off by some barrier. A lot has happened that I need to tell the Underground about, like Ho-oh and a confirmation that Pokémon are real, not to mention Dream--that Bitch--and..." At that moment, Drix saw Emily23 walking up to him.

"Who're your PM'ing to Drix? Emily23 asked, bouncing from one foot to the other, Bunneary mimicking her. Max yawned as he walked over beside her.

Before she even got to see the title of the PM, Drix had already shut the device and had it back in his pocket. "What and to whom I am PM'ing is none of your business!" Drix snapped.

"Chill out, I just wanted to know what you were doing," Emily23 looked hurt.

"Well I don't want to share it with you so get lost," Drix retorted. Emily23 walked back over to the rest of the party, the bounce gone from her step; Bunneary sauntering behind her. Drix didn't mean to be rude, but if the party found out he had been passing information to the Underground, he knew that he would perhaps be in serious trouble. Best not to let anything slip for the time being.

"Alright guys, can we get along for five minutes?" Twilmer looked extremely irritated. The fact that she was not a morning person and Geoffrey had yet to bring her her usual morning coffee was not helping matters much. "What are we going to do now?" No sooner had the words come out of her mouth, than she heard a scream. She turned and saw Emily23 pointing behind Twilmer. She looked and saw a Fearow lying on the ground, dead. Twilmer glanced cautiously at the dead Fearow. While few Pokémon besides the great Ho-oh ever resided in these lands, if Pokémon were real then the simple coding that kept them separated wouldn't affect them anymore and they could cross over into other areas. This means that Dialga and Palkia could do the same. The 100 level gain event was not one to be taken lightly as only six people had ever beaten it. If the Pokémon had become real, then what was to stop those two terrors from meeting? Twilmer shook her head and pushed that thought aside. "That can't be good."

Before anyone else could react, laughter the sound of rotten honey met their ears. They turned to see Dream walking towards them; a tiny Tailow perched on her hand. It whistled softly and ruffled its feathers. Dream then gripped the bird in both hands, breaking its neck and tossing it to the ground.

"You bitch," Drix hissed. Trellaine fired an ice blast at her, but she easily blocked the attack with a barrier she created.

"What the hell do you want?" Aura asked, pointing her katanas to the girl. Emily23 was horrified by the Tailow; however the way Nightmare twisted and moved through the air was mesmerizing; Nightmare was very agile for a Misdreavous.

The ground suddenly began to quake. Twilmer looked up to see a giant white and gold Pokémon step down from the heavens. Where his hoof made contact with the earth nearly split the land in two. "The hell?" Twilmer managed. The rest seemed as speechless as she.

"Language, young one," Arceus spoke, a sound like a wind chime coming from him as he walked forward. "I was not aware Pokémon were capable of such language, save Sparia, though that's mainly due to her partner." Arceus spoke in a wise and ancient voice that was tinted with a sense of cheerfulness.

"What in Darkrai is going on?" Twilmer asked.

Arceus smiled, or Twilmer supposed it was a smile. "Satoshi created more than he bargained for. When he created this world, he became like a god and believed himself to be one, or I assume so given his feelings."

"If you're a god, then why don't you know what Mr. Tajiri is thinking?" Twilmer asked, always a skeptic.

"I'm the god of Pokémon, not humans. I see that you must be a human as well for your thoughts are merely jumble to me." Arceus considered her for a second. "Heed my words; there is nothing left in this world but turmoil and destruction. Beware what is to come. An online program runs like a well oiled machine while a real world runs of its own accord. Merging order with chaos is never a good idea."

"So this place and the Pokémon, they're real?" Twilmer asked, wanting to make sure from the only thing that seemed to know most of what was going on.

"What is reality?" Arceus countered, jumping into the air. His white fur shimmered for a second, and he was gone, leaving Twilmer with more questions than answers. It hadn't even seemed odd that a god had appeared before her, which was a show of how strange her life had gotten recently. Dream seemed to shrug as if she had been expecting the interruption.

"DAMN IT! NOTHING MAKES SENSE! I AM SICK OF BEING A PICHU! WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON!" Twilmer shouted, sparks flying from her cheeks and from the programming around her. Dream took a step back, temporarily frightened. Then she laughed.

"It seems you want your dreams to become true, but can you make it through the nightmare first?" Dream asked, pointing forward. Her Misdreavous touched the ground, distorting firewall mountain to resemble a dark world of flame.

"Hell?" Trellaine puzzled.

"Close enough; it's your worst nightmare," Dream's face turned dangerous as she rose into the air. Misdreavous took on the form of what each person feared most for a second time; however this time there appeared to be more danger. This time their nightmares aimed to kill them. "If you can defeat your nightmare, then perhaps you will discover your dreams." Dream snickered.

Twilmer found herself face to face with her ex-boyfriend. She gulped, suddenly feeling the tough front she had built around herself fading once more. The others weren't any better off fighting their nightmares.

ooo

Trellaine stared into the face of his worst nightmare. He had never experienced this before and thus it was twice as devastating to him. He was face to face with himself. What he would be if he allowed his hacking skills to take over and he had complete control of this online world. He had always feared going too far with things, which is why he put on such a front of being a jokester. The evil lord Trellaine had become glared at him. "All this could be yours, you know, if you were only willing to succumb to your temptations." Trellaine shook his head, turning away when a fireball nearly singed his hood. Haunter barely dodged it. Trellaine scowled and turned; a dangerous look on his face.

"No one messes with my partner," he snarled, aiming a fireball of his own at his nightmare.

ooo

Ever since Dream Appeared Aura wanted to do nothing more then slice her down in very little, tiny pieces. That woman was so damn annoying it started to get on her nerves really fast. She just kept messing with them constantly and they were almost like sitting Golducks, waiting for her to affect them with another hacking.

When she saw Twilmer's boyfriend appearing once more, a small sting of fear struck her. Then she must be back as well...

"Aura."

She turned around, as slowly as she could; only to face what she feared the most. A young woman with short brown hair stood beside her, her bright, azure eyes staring at Aura with intense force. Her clothes and side of her face were covered in blood and Aura took a hasty step back, to put more distance between them.

"You're not here." The black-haired woman whispered, all sounds around her disappeared, and she was no longer paying attention to the others who also faced their nightmares. "You can't be here, you're d-dead..."

"And whose fault is that?" The other woman smiled gently, yet there was something downright creepy in the gesture. "Eskarine, why did you let me go?"

Hearing her real name, Aura shivered, still refusing to get close to the image of the woman, taking a step back every time she tried to get closer.

"You ran out on your own." Gods, this could not be happening, not like this, not now. "Madeleine, you ran from me, it was not my fault you had that accident and--"

The woman placed her thin arms around Aura's waist and no matter how eerie the feeling, it was way too familiar for the swordswoman to protest and she probably wouldn't have been able to even under better circumstances. Though she would never admit it, she had longed to feel the touch of her lover ever since that fateful day.

"Shhhh. It's okay now. I can fix everything, if you let me." Madeleine whispered soothingly, her arms encircling the other woman even more. What Aura did not see was that her fingernails grew longer and sharper; a set of dagger-like nails almost digging in the small of her back.

"How?" Aura whispered weakly, bound under her spell. "There is no way to fix all of this..."

"I can." The brown-haired woman smiled. "Just let me take care of you. Just remember what the top ten promised you for helping Twilmer."

She was close, only an inch away. Her nails raised, ready to rip the flesh she was holding. Her lips were close to Aura's own, almost sealing the distance with a kiss.

A scream from Twilmer caught Aura's hazy attention for a second and she saw her admin falling to the ground. That seemed to sober her up and she blinked hard, her senses returning.

"TWILMER!" She yelled and pushed the surprised woman away, rushing to Twilmer's side. Twilmer never screamed like that. Something must be terribly wrong.

ooo

Helium shuddered, hugging his knees close to his body as bees encircled him. They were in all sizes. Some were large enough to kill him in one sting and others were so small that they would not be seen until it was too late. Vileplume seemed to only attract them closer. Helium wanted nothing more than to die right then and there; anything to be rid of the bees. He heard Twilmer scream; however, the bees were too much and he could not get up form where he was sitting. The woman he loved was screaming in pain and all he could do was sit there feeling helpless, scared, and alone.

ooo

Emily23 waited for her dad to show up, but he was nowhere to be found. Emily23 looked over and noticed Max was using safety guard. She sighed in relief and hugged the pink Pokémon. She knew she would not be able to face her father again, especially not after last time. "Thank you," she smiled. Max yawned, but with a smile on his face. Emily then heard a scream. She turned and saw Twilmer falling to the ground. What in blazes was happening? She trudged along towards the admin at what seemed an unbearably slow pace. She couldn't stray too far from Max or the nightmares would resurface, but she just wished she had worked with him more on protection attacks so that his range was wider. She mentally kicked herself for her stupidity and neglect.

ooo

"Okay, what's this?" Drix asked to no one in particular while he heard Dream talk about a nightmare. Suddenly there was a white flash in front of him. When the light faded Drix looked into the face of... himself, but how he was in real live. Black hair, blue eyes, slightly muscular, and... in a wheelchair.

"Hi there Drix or should I say Ralph?" the real life Drix, or rather Ralph, heralded.

"What? What is this?" Drix said confused.

"What you don't recognize me Drix?" he asked

"Of course I do! You're me, but I'm me and and..."

"That's right Drix you are me, but I am you outside the game. The same old you but only offline," he said.

"What do you mean?" Drix asked. He had always been a little thick.

"The car crash, Drix, the car crash. You always were a Jackass, always trying to exceed your limits. Until that day of course. You drove us into a tree killing your girlfriend and best friend and getting yourself into a wheelchair. Was it worth it for the few hours of fun drinking yourself into an oblivion that all too soon became a harsh reality?"

"No!! I mean yes, it was my fault but what has that to do with you, umm me?" Drix asked, getting a headache from memories he could not remember and some he had blocked out forever.

"Let me explain, Drix. After that the only thing you did was playing games online because you couldn't exceed your limits in real life you tried in the online world. Not doing anything but sitting behind your computer. Starving your body, not taking care of it. And now look, you can't log out and what will happen to me? I'll slowly die while you keep having fun." Drix looked shocked and Ralph continued. "But that's what you're used to, huh? Never once have you apologized to your friends for killing them. Never once have you feel bad about it. The only thing you care about is being a jackass. You are only looking out for number one. After you weren't jailed by some merciful act of Lucifer himself, you figure you would have more gratitude, but that word isn't part of your vocabulary, is it?"

Drix had heard enough. "You may be my body, but you don't know anything about me!" Drix yelled. He grabbed his sword and slashed his through his own body, killing it.

Another white flash and he was on his back, lying on the ground. He had his eyes closed. "Look what I've done, Not only did I kill my friends but now I also killed my myself," he thought; a small twinge of sorrow in his voice. Lying there on the ground he made a promise to himself. He would never ever get himself or the ones close to him into useless danger. Never again. Drix opened his eyes as he heard a scream. When he looked around, he saw Twilmer fall.

"FUCK!" Drix yelled as he jumped up.

ooo

Twilmer heard the shouts around her, but she was frozen. "I love you, you know." Derek walked forward, running a hand through his messy, strawberry blonde hair. His light blue eyes held hers. She felt tears coming to her eyes.

"No," she whimpered, "I never wanted to meet again, not like this." Twilmer looked up at him, eyes wide with fear.

"Just let me back into your heart. Let me back into your SOUL!" he shouted the last part, running towards her. Twilmer was frozen to the spot, even though she heard shouts around her.

"TWILMER!" Aura shouted, or rather Twilmer heard in her head as Aura was too busy dealing with her own ghost of the past.

"Damn it, woman," was the reply Twilmer thought she heard from Drix.

"Come on, you're fuzzy, you'll be alright!" Emily23 was whimpered.

"Not much of a code writer," was Trellaine shook his head jokingly.

"Twilmer, you can do it. I will never leave you." Helium looked at her in her mind.

Each partner was heard in turn. Each one seemed to be trying to unfreeze Twilmer. "They are my future as you are my past." Twilmer replied, staring up into Derek's eyes, tears trickling down her face. She didn't move fast enough and never even thought to expect what happened next. Derek produced a sword out of thin air, and struck Twilmer directly through the chest.

Time seemed to freeze.

"Why?" Twilmer asked, looking at Dream. She was however not of sound enough mind to respond. She had gone mad a long time ago when she had made the ultimate sacrifice to the system. When she had died and been reborn into the coding and world she loved.

"I wanted revenge," was all Twilmer heard, "revenge on you, on PWO corp., on...I don't even remember anymore."

"What did I do?" Twilmer asked.

"You took the position I wanted most. You became the admin that I should've been. No one knew the coding like I did, no one else studied the game so hard that they actually...You have died of a stab wound. You won't suffer like I had to." Dream responded. She wasn't telling the entire story, but it didn't matter anymore. Twilmer would have plenty of time to think things over wherever she was headed.

Time began to move forward, slowly, then picking up speed. Twilmer fell to the ground, virtual blood pouring around her tiny, yellow body. "TWILMER!" Emily23 shouted, finally making it towards the yellow fluff ball that had been her leader as well as reluctant friend.

"NO," Trellaine shouted, dodging a blow from his nightmare.

Twilmer's body lay motionless on the ground; however the usual timer that appeared over fallen character's heads to indicate the rebirth countdown didn't appear. Twilmer's body flashed and disappeared.

In real life, Twila dropped her controller and fell onto her keyboard.

She was dead.

ooo

End Part 25

Read and review. No comments here from me. I'm not in the mood.


	26. A Living Nightmare

Pokémon World Online

Part 26: A Living Nightmare

Disclaimer: Holy cow, 26 parts long o.o; this is indeed my longest fic ever. Yep, cliff hanger last time, kinda, but remember, the plot is only half over so there is more action to come from me. I kinda miss the mindless not plot I had in the beginning, but that was mainly to get you to know the characters and become attached to them and such. This part is dedicated to Guy who is sore at Helium for stealing some of his lines XD

ooo

"Twilmer!" Aura yelled once again as she ran towards their admin, but the Pichu image flashed and vanished into thin air just as she bent down to catch her fallen friend. What was going on? They were supposed to have thirty seconds to use revive potion, but now... She watched as Emily23 backed away in fear but not before she had chance to see what Aura was afraid of; a set of sharp claw-like fingers had dug into her sides from behind. She screamed as they broke her skin and slipped into her flesh; virtual blood pooling from the wounds.

"Eskarine, honey, it's not nice to run away from me like that." A sweet voice by her ear caused her to flinch yet again at sound of her name. She tried to reach for her swords, but the hand that was digging into her right side pulled out with the sickening sound and grabbed her wrist, preventing her from reaching for her weapons.

"You're not her." Aura whispered, as she struggled with her nightmare. "You're not... you c-can't be..."

A clawed hand by the side of her face caressed her cheek as the lips of brown-haired woman came close to her ear. "I am. Oh believe me, I am real." The other set of claws pierced her wound harder and Aura yelped in pain. "But even if I wasn't, there is no way you could hurt me... is there?"

And she knew she was right.

ooo

Trellaine pushed his other away and created an ice slide on the ground with his magic. He jumped on, sliding as fast a she could towards where he had heard Twilmer's scream coming from. "Beats walking, eh Haunter?" He asked his partner, who looked at him confused. "Oh right, no feet." Trellaine looked behind him and noticed his other self rushing towards him on a similar ice flow. "Copycat," he called over his shoulder.

"Trellaine, I am you. Great minds think alike." The other him smirked, sending spikes forward, which dived under the ground and rose up, piercing the ice flow. Trellaine jumped off the ice and flung a bolt of lightning behind him, hitting his nightmare. The other Trellaine stumbled.

"Haunter, old friend, if you would do the honors," Trellaine motioned. Haunter nodded and grinned, his fingers turning black as pitch. He shot his hands forward which dug deeply into Trellaine's nightmare. The image disappeared and Trellaine nodded in approval at the Haunter. Haunter grinned and floated around Trellaine happily. Trellaine then remembered why he had been traveling so urgently. He created a new ice path and continued sliding on his way.

ooo

Helium had seen Twilmer fall. He had seen her ex-boyfriend cut her down. He had seen her disappear and die. He had seen all of this and had done nothing. He hadn't been able to overcome the bees. "I told her I'd always be there for her," Helium hugged his knees. Oh how far he had fallen. The carefree young lad who loved plants and romance novels had done a lot of growing in the past few days. He had learned that not all of his friends could be trusted one hundred percent. He had killed the Ho-oh of the mountain accidentally and now he hadn't been there when the person most important to him had needed it most. Some party member he was. The bees surrounded Helium when he stood up fast.

"I'm sick of being held down and held back." An image of Jason laughing at him flashed before his eyes. For the first time in what had to have been years, Helium was angry. He pulled out his powders and closing his eyes so he wouldn't see the bees, began to throw them every which way. The sound of fallen insects came from all sides, however he didn't dare open his eyes until the last of the powder was gone. He cautioned a glance and noticed the piles of bee bodies all around him. Taking a deep breath, Helium ran as fast as he could out of the circle of bees. He took deep breaths when he reached the other side, Vileplume waddling up beside him.

"I did it," Helium breathed in awe. He then ran as fast as he could to the spot where Twilmer had fallen; his beloved Twila. Where had she gone? He felt hot tears sting the corner of his eyes and let them flow freely as he pounded his fist against the ground.

ooo

As Aura laid on the dark ground gasping for air, she could vaguely see Drix facing a young man in a wheelchair. Not really understanding what was going on, she tried to focus; however, a clawed hand turned her head back so all she could do was stare into the bright azure eyes. Her swords were taken away, god knows where, maybe even into another dimension - Aura couldn't care less. The empty hilts at her sides were of little concern to her during the present.

"Seeing you so venerable makes me want to play with you some more." Her brown-haired nightmare had pinned her to ground, even though the swordswoman didn't really have any will in her to actually run away. "One glance of your own past reduces you to that pitiful creature you really are." Aura hissed when the claws scratched her cheeks, leaving four thin trails of bloody lines. "It makes me want to tell you over and over again how much more you will have to suffer to repay for what you have done." That might have been true, Aura thought. There was nothing in the world she could do to make the rotting feeling of guilt leave her mind. Lying there weak and vulnerable made it even clearer.

Aura laughed. The top ten had told her that if she helped Twilmer along on her quest to find the glitch, then she would receive something that no amount of expertise in the bounty hunting and item collecting fields could give her. In a way, she had known from the beginning that Twilmer was going to be destroyed, but she had not cared. After all, what was one admin's character being destroyed if it meant hearing her precious Madeline's voice once more? Their relationship had been a rocky one, but their love had always brought them together. From the moment they met in Paris to the moment Madeline had died before her eyes, she had loved her like she had never loved anyone before. Eskarine had been a selfish girl growing up, however Madeline had changed her and brought out the good in her. If Madeline could see her now, manipulating the small Pichu admin the way she had done, what would she say? Though, Aura had come to realize that she cared for the young admin and couldn't allow harm to fall to her, especially at her knowledge.

"Madeleine wouldn't hold a grudge for me." She whispered her voice raspy and tired. "She was kind and gentle. Never left me, no matter what idiotic things I have done in the past. Never felt the need for revenge." Aura grabbed the wrists of the clawed hands that were over her heart, ready to strike down. "She was all I ever needed, the better half of me. That was the woman I fell in love with." Aura moved her hands to the nightmare's neck, surprising her opponent with the sudden movement. "And. You. Are. NOT. HER!"

As she wrapped her fingers tightly over the neck of a monster that was posing as the person she had loved the most, Aura felt a stinging pang of fear and regret. Was she really able to do this? The brown-haired woman trashed around, her claw-like fingers cutting trough swordswoman's arms deeply until red streaks of virtual blood streamed down her arms. Soon, the struggling ceased, and the usually bright eyes now stared at her accusingly, the light in it disappearing, dulling the azure irises as the life slipped away, though the nightmare had never held life in the first place. The body gradually vanished into thin air and once it was gone, Aura had collapsed on the ground, exhausted, staring into the dark endless sky above their battlefield.

And then, slowly, a sound emerged from the back of her throat. Aura, the genius swordswoman, one of most feared bounty hunters in Pokémon World Online, the ice-princess and former Top Ten member started to weep miserably like a little girl.

ooo

Drix looked around and noticed that the state of the party was not the best. Emily23 appeared fine; however she was kneeling and weeping. Drix shrugged as Twilmer had just died and so it made sense that she was sad. He wasn't sad, but he had never cared much for Twilmer and it didn't bother him in the least bit that he was not affected as he should be by this. Drix, both in real life and in the online world, rarely felt any emotion besides anger and a snide enjoyment when he irritated another. He wasn't a sadist; however, he was a broken man without even realizing it himself.

Then he spotted Aura who was sobbing in a way that greatly disturbed him. "What the hell happened to make her cry?" If something had made Aura cry, then it was something to be afraid of. He knew the party needed to move fast and defeat Dream with or without Twilmer by their side. He walked over to her and used his sword to help him kneel down. "You okay?" he asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.

She wanted to say yes, that everything was fine, that he should just leave her the hell alone and take care of his own business. She needed to say this, to make him go away and to save at least the last little bit of her dignity, but what was the point now?

"No," she replied in a choked sob, even though her tears had finally stopped. "No, I'm not okay."

The weight of his hand on her shoulder should have been offending, she should have shrugged it off angrily; however, no matter how much she may have detested the man, the weight was a comforting anchor to reality as she raised her hands to her face, watching them tremble.

"I've killed her," she whispered more to herself than to anyone else, unaware of the worried and slightly confused look Drix gave her. "I've killed her...again."

There was a lot of blood covering her wounded sides that needed to be treated. Drix helped her to get up, supporting the unusual silent woman. Normally by that time, she would have already cussed him out and shoved him back; possibly taking a stab at him with her katanas, which were lying on the ground beside where she had been. They must have fallen out during her fight with her nightmare.

"Always the knight in shining armor, aren't you, Drix?" Aura sighed, blinking weakly.

ooo

End part 26

Short part is short, but I wanted to get the nightmares out of the way. So yah, reviews much appreciated. Feedback makes me type faster 8D


	27. Special 3: My Better Half

Pokémon World Online

Part 27 (Special 3): My Better Half

Disclaimer: I do not own Madeleine or Paris or Eskarine or tulips (my fav kind of flower) or Ruby Tuesdays (I love that restaurant). In fact, I don't own anything in this part. I'm simply taking a bit of background story Moya (wonderful woman) gave me and making it a part so I can keep you guys on the edge of your seats for a bit longer xD because I'm cruel like that. This is Eskarine's story, not Aura's...though they are the same person. Never mind then. This part is dedicated to all the people in the world with crappy jobs. Just keep working, dears, and life will get better. Also, a nod is given to mwc01 for reviewing twice in a row. Way to go, mate D

Also, this story has been written under the influence of Sweeney Todd OST. It's the most delightfully morbid musical ever. I'm currently obsessed with it and will randomly start singing or humming one of the songs from it. I 100 recommend this musical to everyone. Go see it now! Sure it's about killing people and then baking them into pies essentially, but it's still wonderful D and kudos to those who can see the methods of literary merit in this (foreshadowing and symbolism X3) XD yepyep, writing practice FTW

NOTE: Madeline is French, meaning she speaks it (de de de) and since I have NO skill at French (as Guy will confirm), everything is in English, but the manager only speaks in French and Madeline too for the most part...(pretend it's French) -

ooo

"_Madeline, hurry up and finish setting the tables! The designers will be here soon as well as the biggest payday of our lives. Do anything to mess it up and your ass is mine!_" a portly man with a mustache that seemed to devour his face shouted at a young woman in rough French. Madeline simply nodded, unfolding a table cloth, shaking out the wrinkles, and placing it gently on the table. She turned her azure eyes to table and noticed that there were a few wrinkles left. With a slender arm and a small hand, she gently smoothed each wrinkle out one at a time. She wanted to make sure each table was presentable. She smiled as she stood back admiring her work. Yes, this table would make a fine setting for one of the designers to have a cream puff and coffee. "_MADELINE! I thought I told you to hurry up! Now get a flower on that table on the double. I don't know why I put up with you,_" the manager growled.

Madeline sighed and walked over to the small cart of fresh tulips. Each was in its own vase of water. The vases had different designs on them and the color of the flower complimented the color of the design. "_Come here little red; you will make a fine addition to the table I just finished._" Madeline gently picked up the red vase and held it so that the red tulip was right under her nose. She breathed in deeply and sighed. Nothing beat the smell of a fresh tulip straight from the flower shop. She smiled as she set it on a table. The voice of her boss cut through to her like a knife and she winced as she hurried. She was sad that she didn't have any time to fix the other tables as she had the red one, but there was nothing she could do. As her boss always said, time is money.

ooo

"Where the hell am I supposed to go?" A tall, thin woman around nineteen asked herself as she looked around Paris. She held the map close to her face turning it every which way, but it still didn't make sense to her. She sighed and sat on a chair in front of a cafe; massaging her forehead. She could already feel a migraine forming and she hadn't even gotten to the designing convention yet. "Come on, Eskarine, think!" She mentally urged herself.

She had only been in design school for two years when she graduated near the top in her class. She was called a prodigy in design and her professors had all enjoyed her. She had been allowed to skip a year upon entrance and start as a sophomore. Mr. Burkins, a lanky man that one would never associate with design upon first glance, had been enraptured with a blouse she has made for an art project and has immediately gotten into contact with her. She had been able to leave high school early in order to attend thanks to his funding and support. She had been thankful for this as high school had never been a strong point for her. She was smart, but the mocking and ignorance of the other students led her to abhor school.

With a sigh, she stood and began to walk briskly forward. After gathering her thoughts, she had remembered that the meeting would take place in a convention center where the Eiffel tower was in plain sight. She smiled and began to head towards the Eiffel tower. She knew once she was there, the center wouldn't be hard to find due to the other participants lugging suitcase, as she was, filled with designs of their own. The convention was a reward of the school for graduating top of the class. The point of the convention was basically to show off one's designs. It was open to the public as well as companies; though it was rare someone got hired at this convention. It was about having fun and getting your name out in the world. The design school would also benefit because she would be a walking advertisement for what one could accomplish if they attended.

She spotted the great landmark of Paris and smiled; adjusting the bags she was carrying. She looked around and noticed several others loaded down with suitcases as she was. She bustled after them and made her way into the convention center. She dropped her suitcases and looked around in awe at the large interior of the convention hall and all the tables lined against the walls. Each had someone setting up designs that varied from a simple bandanna to extravagant ball gowns.

Eskarine walked over to the registration area and filled out many papers and showed them her show pass. They smiled and one of the workers led her to her table. She immediately began to set up her booth so that her designs added their flare of color to the ones already set up. She smirked, putting her hand son her hips, knowing that few of the others could compare with hers. As egotistical as this sounded, the statement was pretty much true. Now all she had to do was wait for the admirrers to arrive.

ooo

Madeline looked through the window of the ballroom hall to the convention right outside. Her boss had told her that she was not to go outside and interfere, but the beautiful assortment of fabrics attracted her like a moth to a light. She had always dreamed of wearing some of the elegant, dainty gowns like the famous designers made and wore, but she knew that with her meager salary that that was out of the question. She sighed and made do with looking through the window. Or at least until-"_MADELINE! Get away from the window_!" Her manager glared at her as he whipped his huge, meaty hands on his apron.

Madeline jerked back and sighed. She walked away from the window and sat down at the red table. It was just as well that she was called back. That wasn't the world for her. The only world for her was that of cleaning tables and serving food. Not that she minded--in fact she rather enjoyed it--but she wished that she had more freedoms. Oh well...

ooo

Eskarine collapsed in her chair as the last of the company left. Oh what a day it had been. One guy who was extremely nervous and mousy had taken a special interest in her designs and she had given him her email. With the prospect of possibly a job in her future, she packed up her designs happily. Now it was time for the fancy after party.

Eskarine hurried to the bathroom to change into a fancy blue dress she had designed. She brushed her short, mahogany hair and clasped a jade necklace around her neck which matched perfectly with the beads sewn onto the dress and the bracelet on her left wrist. She spritzed herself with tulip scented perfume and hurried out into the formal room, purse clutched in her right hand.

She hated making small talk and the fact that so many of the other designers were rather shy didn't help matters much. In a matter of moments, Eskarine felt a headache forming. She excused herself from the young man who had been trying to seem intelligent and was failing miserably, and plopped down at a table decorated in luxurious shades of red. She drained her small glass and set it aside, holding her head in her hands. The formal wasn't as much fun as she had hoped. Oh well, she supposed that she would have one more drink before bolting. The waiter came over and smiled at her. "May get you drink?" she asked in terrible English.

Eskarine smiled, "_Yes, I'd like a Malibu_," she responded in French. The maid started, then laughed softly and nodded, rushing to the bar. Eskarine shook her head and fiddled with the beads on her bracelet as she waited. The waiter soon returned looking slightly frazzled. "Come sit down and take a load off." Eskarine patted the seat next to her.

"_I really shouldn't_," the waiter protested, but found herself sinking down into the chair. She began to fiddle with the table cloth, and then smiled. "I set this table special." She tried to speak English again, then sighed and gave up. "_I'm Madeline_." She smiled.

"I'm Eskarine, but you can call me Esk," she smiled, extending her hand. Madeline smiled and took it. Her skin felt so soft under Esk's hand and fragile like porcelain. "_I'm the 19 year old designer from New York and I_'m going to be quite famous some day." Esk bragged.

"I'm a waitress and I just turned 21. I don't really mind this work if it weren't for-" Madeline began, but was interrupted by a sharp voice.

"MADELINE! Leave the guests alone and do your job!" Her Manager shouted, grabbing the girl roughly and pulling her to her feet. He then handed her the pile of dirty dishes and walked away.

"I'm sorry, I have to go," Madeline bowed her head with a gentle smile on her face, walking away.

"What an ass hole," Esk murmured, waving to Madeline as she left. She stopped and looked at her hand, then looked at it, a faint blush forming on her cheeks. What was she doing? She shook it off and began to sip at her Malibu.

ooo

Esk had decided to stay at the party, looking through the crowd to catch quick glimpses of the dainty waitress. Meanwhile many of the guys tried to get her to dance with them or grab a drink with them. After awhile, she got sick of it all and told them to leave her alone, however one followed her to the red adorned table. "Go away," she growled, glaring at the muscular man.

"Oh come on, have a drink with me." He sat down in the seat Madeline had sat in and scooted closer to Esk.

"I said no!" Esk glared at him, which caused him to smile and reach out to her. She jumped back, knocking over the chair and the red tulip. "Get the fuck away from me!" Esk yelled, slapping him across the face and storming away.

Meanwhile, Madeline collapsed under the large pile of dishes her manger was piling into her arms. A few broke and others rolled away. "You good for nothing girl! I'm docking your pay for the night!" He shouted, the veins standing out on his neck. Madeline sniffled and got shakily to her feet with a frown. She sighed as she reached to pick up the plates she had dropped when she saw Esk charging forward to shouts form behind her. Madeline watched the girl as she moved. "Didn't you hear me?" He shouted.

"Madeline!" Eskarine shouted as she watched the manager round on the small dainty woman. "You're coming with me. You don't deserve the shit this one dishes out," with that, she grabbed Madeline's hand, who gratefully accepted, not caring for what little pay she probably wasn't going to receive anyways, and the two fled from the convention center.

Once outside, the two panted and only released each other's hands reluctantly. "That was quite a rush," Madeline smiled, looking over at Eskarine.

"Sorry to take you out of there like that, but those guys were being such assholes. Sorry about your pay," Esk looked down, suddenly realizing just how selfish she had behaved.

"No no, I don't mind. He probably wasn't going to pay me anyways," Madeline sighed, twirling a piece of her hair between her forefinger and thumb. Eskarine wasn't sure if it was the way she twirled her hair, the waitress outfit, the full moonlight behind them, or the Eiffel tower in the background, but she found herself drawn to the small, dainty French woman.

"You're beautiful," she murmured before thinking. She mentally slapped herself for this; however Madeline didn't seem to notice. She turned towards Esk and smiled. "Hey, want to go get a drink?" she asked.

"That sounds heavenly," Madeline smiled. The two walked around the corner, searching for a bar. They found one on the corner in clear view of the Eiffel tower. Red tulips decorated the entire building and Madeline seemed drawn to them. "This place is marvelous," she whispered. Esk smiled and lead her to a table. The two then spent the rest of the night talking and drinking coffee. Esk had never laughed so hard as when she was with the waitress. There was something different about Madeline that she couldn't quite put her finger on, but sent a thrill down her spine. Soon night led to morning and before either of the two women knew it, the next day had arrived. They yawned, blinking in the early morning sun.

"Oh man, I didn't mean to keep you," Eskarine stretched with a yawn. Madeline shook her head and smiled. The two got up to leave, but not before exchanging phone numbers and addresses with the promise to keep in touch. Eskarine smiled, breathing in the morning air deeply, as the two went their own ways and she went to the convention center to pick up the stuff she had left behind; still in her blue gown.

ooo

Eskarine stepped out on the balcony of her apartment and enjoyed the early morning breeze with a coffee cup in one hand and her cell phone in the other. It had been ringing for the past hour; however she couldn't be arsed to answer it. She knew it was her manager, and she knew he was coming to see her soon to view the new designs, but he didn't need to call her to remind her. She put the phone on silent and stuck it into her pocket, sipping her coffee.

It had been nearly six months since she last saw the French dainty waitress and the two had not really kept much in contact. One or two letters and only a handful of calls. Perhaps it had all been in vain, but she still couldn't shake the image from her mind of the girl twirling her hair in the moonlight. Her cheeks burned just thinking of that. She walked inside and set her coffee cup on her desk to hear someone pounding at her door. "Right on schedule," she smirked. She knew the mousy manager would be early.

"You know if it weren't for your designs, I could've fired you. I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I hired you in Paris," he complained. Eskarine tuned him out after awhile and picked her coffee back up, sipping it. She had just bought this apartment with money she had received from her works and the manager's help, but she still liked to procrastinate just to watch him squirm, which he did all too easily.

"I have the new design right here," she smirked, passing a shirt to him. He examined it in wide-eyed awe. Eskarine smiled and shook her head. He was so predictable, but so much better to work for than that manager Madeline had had. She frowned merely thinking of the horrid man. After he left, she planned on playing a new online game she had picked up--something called Pokémon World Online--for an hour or so before heading out into the city for lunch.

"These are impeccable and remarkable! I'm so glad I hired-" the manager was cut off in mid complement as Eskarine's cell rang. She checked the screen and didn't recognize the number.

"Hello?" she answered to the anoyment of her manager.

"This Eskarine, yes?" her heart skipped a beat as Madeline's voice met her ears.

"Yes, what's up?" She tried to sound casual and keep the tone of excitement out of her voice; butterflies fluttering wildly in her stomach.

"I on phone in lobby. Umm, I not know how to say, but I am in New York for trip. I am in lobby of building you gave address for, but men with scary are stop me from enter because I don't have something call appointment." Time froze and Eskarine's heart nearly stopped.

"You're in the lobby?" she asked in French and in wild disbelief.

"Ah, yes, and these men won't let me in without an appointment or something." Madeline spoke French back. Eskarine dropped the phone and ran out of the apartment leaving the nervous, spazzy manager behind to look confusedly after her retreating form.

"Why do I always hire the weird ones?" He sighed, sitting down in Eskarine's desk chair.

She didn't have the patience to wait for the elevator, tackling the eleven flights of stairs with inhuman speed. She ran out of the door and spotted Madeline, who grinned at her. She ran over to the beautiful French waitress and tackled her with a hug. The two staggered, but did not part. They stayed in each other's embrace for what seemed an eternity. The guards cleared their throats and shifted uncomfortably at the scene and soon left. They figured that the foreign girl had a friend in the apartment complex like she said.

ooo

For the next three weeks, Madeline and Eskarine were inseparable. They became the best of friends and saw all of the sights together from the Statue of Liberty to Central Park. They made the best of their time, taking in a few Broadway shows before Eskarine escorted her dear friend back to her hotel room each night. The weeks passed quickly and soon it was time for Madeline to return back to France. Eskarine sighed with a heavy heart and accompanied Madeline back to the airport. "Thanks for making my time here the greatest," Madeline smiled. She turned and headed towards the plane wearing the red tulip dress Eskarine had designed for her.

As Eskarine watched her go, she felt something drop in the pit of her stomach and tears coming to her eyes. She had been the happiest she had ever been in her entire life these past few weeks and now the only thing that had ever brought her complete and total happiness was now walking away from her. "WAIT!" she shouted, several people looking over at her. Madeline stopped and turned, looking confused at Eskarine. "Please, don't go. I don't want you to go," she begged. Madeline's eyes widened as she looked at Eskarine. "Please," Eskarine pleaded, which was so out of character for her. Madeline's eyes widened and before she could say anything, Eskarine kissed her. In an airport full of people she kissed her. Madeline closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around Eskarine. Several people gawked and others seemed disgusted; however that didn't bother the two of them.

"Yes, I will stay with you," Madeline smiled, tears glistening in her eyes. The two walked hand in hand out of the airport and into a beautiful life of love for the two of them.

Madeline moved in with Eskarine and two made a happy life together for the two of them. Madeline often joked that her vacation in New York had extended from a few weeks to the rest of her life. It wasn't easy at first to get used to having someone else in the apartment when Esk had been living alone for so long, but she made the transition swiftly and the two were very happy.

ooo

Madeline had wanted to get a job for awhile now, but she didn't want any help from Eskarine. Esk had told Madeline countless times that she made plenty of money from her designs for the both of them, but Madeline wanted to try and make it on her own. "I need to prove that I'm not the pushover waitress I once was," she had said before leaving the apartment. Esk had understood and while Madeline was away, she decided to try out the MMORPG she had bought weeks ago. With all the excitement of Madeline coming and then moving in with her, she had completely forgotten about this game. She opened it, throwing the instruction book aside, figuring that she could leaf through it later. The startup screen popped up and asked her for a username.

Esk must have stared at that screen for an hour before she came up with Aura. A simple name, but she was proud of it. Then she had to pick a class. She scrolled through each one. Item hunter sounded lame, Grace master looked dull, mage...just no..., then she came upon warrior. Swords play was used to take down foes. Warriors seemed to be the most popular class and the class for her as well. She clicked the accept button and then began to customize her character's appearance. She decided to stay true to her own looks as much as possible. Soon she was pleased with what she had accomplished. She moved her mouse over to the create character button and clicked...

She placed the virtual reality helmet over her head and opened her eyes to the vast digital world around her. She was amazed at how realistic it looked. She could feel the gentle breeze of the low level field area on her face-or could she. She shook her head. It was simply the breeze from the open window in front of her computer. "Get a hold of yourself," she said aloud and was surprised to hear her voice coming from the game headset. So it had a built in microphone. Perhaps she should have read the instructions first. She had a basic sword which looked rather weak. Oh well, she would simply have to work her way up. She walked around the area looking for other gamers to fight so she could level up quickly.

She ended up not finding anyone to fight, but simply marveling at how vast this online world was and exploring the low level areas. This place was like nothing she had ever seen before. She watched as Zizagoon and Rattata ran through the grassy fields, looking up at her as they passed. This place was like a paradise.

Eskarine was completely absorbed in the game until she felt a tap on her shoulder. She smiled and logged out. She took the helmet off and turned to see the face of the one she loved. "How'd it go?" she asked.

"Oh it went wonderfully! My English isn't very good, but I was able to get a job as a waitress at some restaurant called Ruby Tuesday's," Madeline spoke in French. She was beaming. Eskarine felt a little sad that she was going to be a waitress again especially after her horrible experience last time, but Madeline was happy and her smile was infectious. Eskarine stood up and hugged Madeline. This is what made her happy and so she supported it. The two then grinned and ran into the bedroom, locking the door.

ooo

The next day, Eskarine woke up early, making sure not to disturb Madeline who needed her sleep for her first day of work. She finished some work on her newest design, which she had been neglecting lately much to the displeasure of her manager, and once she was satisfied with what she had done, she ran over to her computer and put her head gear on and started up PWO. She found herself exactly where she had been when she logged off yesterday. Today she wanted to find a better sword even though she had no earthly idea how to do that. "Hey you!" She heard a shout. She thought it was Madeline for a second, but the she realized the voice was masculine. She turned to see a man with muscles and purple hair grinning at her; a Bagon at his side. "You new?" he asked.

"Yeah, but you must be too to be here," she smirked at the frown that appeared on his face. He shrugged and smirked right back, which greatly irked Aura. "Where'd you get the Bagon?" she asked, pointing to the little dragon.

"From some tamer walking through the area. She cost me all of my coins, but she's worth it. This little Bagon is going to be the best partner ever and will be worthy of the great Drix," he smirked. Aura did a quick run of his level and found him to be at level three.

"How'd you get the gold? It doesn't seem like something a newbie should have," she asked suspiciously.

"It helps to have friends in high places," he leered. Aura suspected differently.

"You hacked, didn't you?" she growled. "I don't much care for hackers." Aura pulled out her small beginner sword and pointed it at Drix.

He laughed. "I can't believe a lowly level one is challenging a level three." Drix pulled out his own sword, which was the same as Aura's she noted with a grin. "This should be quick and I could use the experience."

"That is if you get it!" Aura ran forward with her sword held awkwardly in her hand. She should've practiced more with swordplay. Oh well, best way to learn was by doing. Aura ran forward, sword in front of her, and took a swipe at Drix. He stumbled and she took this opportunity to land a direct hit. He growled, spitting on the ground, and came for her with furious blows. Aura deflected some; however, she had none of the experience that Drix had had and several of the blows hit her. She cursed and decided that if Drix were to play dirty, than she would too. She kicked him where the sun doesn't shine. Drix fell over and tried to catch his breath. He may not have felt the pain of it as he was just a virtual character, but the move had shocked him. As he was laying on his back, Aura planted a booted foot on his chest and smirked, holding her sword forward and prepared to KO him when--

"Eskarine! I am home!" she heard from real life. The shout had startled Aura enough that Drix was able to grab her leg and pull her down. Drix stood up and pointed his own sword in her face.

"I love to win," he smirked, seeing the defeat on Aura's face. "I'll let you go for now as I don't like to kill n00bs, especially ones as hot as you." He smirked.

"I'm taken you bastard," she cussed, climbing to her feet; however Drix was too far away to hear. She was seething as she logged out.

"Eskarine, my first day of work went well," Madeline beamed, and then frowned as she saw the look of anger on her love's face.

"I almost had him!" she shouted, slamming her virtual reality helmet on the desk. "I was this close, and then you had to-" Eskarine stopped when she saw tears welling in Madeline's eyes. "Oh shit, I'm sorry." Madeline shook her head, which caused the tears to fall down her cheeks. Eskarine ran over, dropping the controller, and embraced her love. Madeline sniffled a few times before returning the hug. "I'm sorry," she whispered, hugging Madeline tightly. She decided right then and there to limit her online time. Never again would she let the game come between her and her love...

ooo

Aura was walking through Tauren and looking around at the different shops. She did not have a partner yet. She was checking for tamers in Tauren when she saw one on the outskirts. "Excuse me," she called, waving for him to stop.

"Well if it isn't Miss Aura. I've heard about you. Come to find a partner, eh?" He asked, turning towards her and holding out his pole. Several Pokémon were leashed to it and looked as if they hadn't eaten in ages. There was a Piplup, an Aipom, and a Vibrava that were covered in cuts and bruises. The ribs on Aipom could be seen.

"You're mistreating these Pokémon, you bastard!" Aura shouted in disgust, holding up her sword.

"So? These Pokémon are hard to find and the people who buy them will take care of them. Besides, they're just virtual data," the tamer shrugged.

"That's disgusting," she growled. She looked at the tiny Piplup and noticed her beak was slightly chipped. "That's it! I challenge you to a duel. If I win, you give me one of those Pokémon." Aura didn't have any money, so this was a good opportunity for her to get a partner.

"Alright, and if I win, then you get to do something for me..." he grinned sickly, trailing off. Aura blanched, but knew that there was no way she would let herself lose. The tamer whistled loud and long. Aura looked around and then heard the flap of large, leathery wings. She looked up and noticed a large Charizard coming in for a landing. He nearly knocked her over as he landed heavily beside the tamer. "Sic her, boy," he commanded with a leer.

The Charizard flew forward and released a flamethrower at Aura. "Damn it, Pokémon are supposed to be used in duels," she growled as she dodged the attack, but knew she had no choice. If she could just tire out the Charizard, she would be golden. She dodged several other attacks before she felt the flames singe her leg. She hissed at the pain and then glared up at the dragon. She rolled to avoid another blast and waited until Charizard swooped low towards her before hitting him with the flat side of her sword as hard as she could. Charizard faltered and fell to the ground. He stood back up with an angry roar and swiped at her with his tail. Aura ran away from the tail and turned back to face the Charizard. The blow had knocked him off guard and had frightened him as well. So the Charizard wasn't as strong as she had first thought.

Aura used this boost of confidence to spur her onwards. She suffered an ember attack to her arm, which caused her to drop the sword, but the Charizard's attacks were becoming more furious and desperate. He wasn't even bothering to fly now. The Charizard was poorly trained. Aura picked up her sword and threw it as hard as she could at the Charizard. It struck him on the snout and he flew off, whimpering. "No!" the tamer shouted angrily.

"Alright, I won. Hand over one of your Pokémon," she smirked, walking towards him.

"No way! You cheated." He backed up, pulling the pole and causing the Pokémon tied to it discomfort.

Aura held her sword dangerously close to the tamer. "I suggest you keep your end of the bargain or I'll make sure a bounty is placed on your head." The tamer gulped and ran off, leaving his pole as he made his cowardly escape. Aura sighed and bent down, untying the Pokémon from the pole. They looked at her and ran away; all save the Piplup.

"Lup," she chirped, looking up at Aura. Aura smiled and patted the small, dirty, mistreated Piplup on the head.

"Want to be my partner?" she asked, bending down so she was on her level. The Piplup nodded happily and jumped into Aura's arms. She stood up, holding the small Piplup close to her. "I won't let anything happen to you," she cooed, enjoying the feel of the soft feathers under her fingers. She looked down at the pole and shook her head in disgust. "You know," she said mostly to herself, "it might not be such a bad idea to be a bounty hunter..."

ooo

Madeline had been working as a waitress for several months and had saved a lot of money. Eskarine tended to stay in the apartment more and more as her design deadlines approached. She limited the time she was online and made sure she was off to spend time with Madeline when she came home from work. Aura was soaring level wise and was getting chummy with the higher up gamers. She enjoyed having a wide range of contacts should she ever need them. All in all, everything in real life and online were going swimmingly.

"Eskarine, can I talk to you?" Madeline asked, folding her hands in front of her as they ate lunch together one Sunday afternoon.

"Sure, what about?" Eskarine asked, taking a bite from her salad.

"Well, I have been working at Ruby Tuesday's for a while now and I've been saving some money." Eskarine nodded at this, mouth full of salad. "Well, I found this," Madeline smiled, passing a newspaper ad to her. Esk picked up the newspaper and saw an ad for a small building for sale that had once been a restaurant. "What do you think?" she asked, beaming. Eskarine nearly choked on her bite of salad when she saw the price. There was no way Eskarine with her waitress income could afford that. She, on the other hand, could. Esk smiled as an idea formed in her head.

"I think it's a wonderful idea," she smiled, looking at the address and phone number.

"Ah! I was hoping so! I've always wanted to own a small restaurant of my own and I think I have enough money saved up. I'm still not exactly sure how the American money system works. I was just wondering if you could help talk to the landlord for me and help me with the money and paperwork, if that's not too much trouble." Madeline was really excited; Eskarine could tell. She sighed and knew that she would have to put a lot of her own money in, but that didn't bother her much so long as Madeline didn't find out.

Eskarine made the calls while Madeline was at work and the landlord wanted her to come to pick up the papers. He seemed really nice. Eskarine decided to wait until Madeline returned to pick up and fill out the paper work since she did want to do it on her own.

Thus a few weeks later, the restaurant was Madeline's. "I want to make it cozy and someplace people won't mind to spend an hour or so simply relaxing and eating." Madeline talked excitedly. Eskarine smiled, glancing over at her love across the vase of red tulips in front of them. Eskarine had brought them to Madeline as she knew they were her favorite. She was helping Madeline clean the restaurant, which had been abandoned for a few years.

"Ugh, so much dust," Eskarine said in disgust as some of the particles traveled up her nose and she sneezed loudly. Madeline giggled at her and Eskarine grumped, and then grinned. "I'll make you pay for that." She took her feather duster and chased Madeline around with it. The two laughed until Madeline sneezed. She smirked and tackled Eskarine, who grabbed her in an embrace before the two toppled to the floor. The two then began to kiss, ignoring the cleaning that still needed to be done. That could wait...

ooo

Sure enough, the cleaning was soon done and the small cozy French restaurant which Madeline had named "Red Tulip Cuisine" was open to the public. Thanks to Eskarine's popularity, she was able to advertise the restaurant of "her friend" to a lot of people so on opening night, the small restaurant was packed. Gentle French music was playing as Madeline walked between tables, taking orders. She walked into the kitchen, wiping a thin sheen of sweat from her brow. "So many orders," she sighed, but she was happy. This is what she enjoyed doing. She smiled as she felt a pair of familiar arms wrap around her waist.

"Guess who," Eskarine smiled.

"Esk, I have work to do," Madeline laughed, pushing her away playfully. "We don't want them to see us. You know no one would approve."

"Yes ma'am," she saluted, earning a laugh from Madeline. "Go get 'em," she said as she walked back into the dining area. She chatted with several of the people and smirked when she saw her small, mousy manager and his wife sitting at a table by the window. "Hey," Eskarine called to him causing him to jump. A satisfied smile crept onto her face at this.

"Oh, hello Eskarine," he bumbled, rubbing his hands together nervously.

"Hey dearie," his wife greeted with a wave. She was also a small woman, but she was sure of herself in a way her husband could never be. "How are your designs coming?" she asked.

"They're coming along nicely. I should have a new one to your husband next week." She smiled sincerely. She liked her manager's wife. She reminded her of her own mother...

"Really?" This was news to the manager.

"If everything goes well," she smiled, causing the manager to furrow his brows. This pretty much meant that she would torture him with the design for much longer.

She laughed and waved to them, walking to her table where she was enjoying a milk-based Malibu. Yes, life was great and Eskarine hoped that life would always be this way...

ooo

"Yes!" Aura shouted as she reached level 51. Sparia nodded affectionately. She had finally crossed the halfway point and was that much closer to level 100. Suddenly a new PWO mail entered her box. She opened it to see an invitation to be the tenth gamer in the top players. She was overjoyed at this. It was everyone's dream to become the tenth member of the top players and she had achieved it. The game was still fairly new so none of the top gamers were even in the 90s yet. Aura had a transportation chip attached to the PWO mail. She took it out and activated. She was instantly transported to PWO Corp's head quarters. She couldn't believe she was actually in the head quarters.

"Hey, Aura," some of them greeted her. She recognized one of them as a young man named Zero who she had met earlier once before. She smiled and stood by him since he was the only one she recognized. "I was wondering when I'd see you here," he smiled, patting his partner--a Rapidash--gently on the neck.

Before Aura could reply, Satoshi himself stepped into the room. "Excellent, we now have ten members in our top ranks. The game is still fairly new, so it's no surprise it's taken us this long." He looked at each gamer in turn. When his eyes flashed to Aura's, she felt her demeanor falter. "Well, I guess you can finally be deemed as the Top Ten." At that, the gathered ten gamers cheered loudly. Aura smiled and cheered herself, though she still didn't exactly feel like one of them. "Well, I would like to welcome Aura into the ranks. I have a speech to make; however, that will be saved for later. For now, let's make our newest member feel welcome with an infamous PWO Corp party." Satoshi bowed before exiting the room.

Indeed, a party was started and potions and food was passed around. Joyful exchanges were made and Aura got to know the other nine pretty well. They seemed like a friendly bunch and Aura was overjoyed to be one of them. The party soon died down and Satoshi reentered the room with an air of a returning emperor.

"Now I have a small speech to make. It's nothing major, but PWO is still fairly new and thus doesn't have many gamers yet. We have been discussing ways to promote this game so that we can get more gamers online and more money. I have decided that when the top gamers became the top ten to make celebrities of sorts out of each of you. Your status and real life information will be shown for all gamers and be used to advertise the game." Many of the ten whispered excitedly at becoming mini celebrities. Aura just rolled her eyes. She was already used to being a celebrity of sorts. "In future meetings, we'll get more personal information for people to 'fan' over. The usual things like favorites and love life and other such things will be posted for all to see in magazines and on forums everywhere. That is all for this meeting. I told you the speech would be short," Satoshi grinned causing several of the gamers to laugh. Satoshi then took his leave; the gamers following suit. Something didn't feel right about this to Aura, but she pushed that feeling aside. She was in the top ten, the dream of all PWO gamers. She smiled at this thought and logged out.

ooo

Eskarine was already famous, so the extra attention from PWO didn't bother her one bit. As she walked down the streets of New York City, she usually received many looks, but she had noticed an increase in them. She ignored them and continued to the Red Tulip to meet Madeline. She noticed the parking lot surrounding the small restaurant was unusually empty. "Hey," Eskarine called when she entered the restaurant. Madeline was leaning on the counter with a dejected look on her face. "What's wrong?" she inquired.

"I have had maybe three customers today, but I've seen plenty of people walk by and point at the restaurant. Some looked angry. I don't know why," she sighed, picking up a fallen red tulip petal from the table. "I've noticed the number of customers has been going down recently, but it's never been this bad." She twirled a long strand of her hair around her finger.

"Every restaurant has their down days. I'm sure that tomorrow you'll have so many customers that you won't know what to do," Eskarine grinned, taking Madeline into her arms. The woman sighed and laughed lightly.

"You're probably right. It must all be in my head." Madeline smiled. Eskarine helped her clean up. The two then walked home in the cool, night air hand in hand.

ooo

In fact, the restaurant continued to lose business. Eskarine woke up one morning and found Madeline still at the kitchen table, shaking her head. "Why aren't you at the restaurant?" she asked.

"I didn't have a single customer yesterday. I don't understand what's wrong. The food doesn't taste any different. Does this often happen in America?" she asked. The fact that she had been crying was apparent in her voice.

"No it doesn't," Esk frowned as she heard a knock at her door. She opened it and found her neighbor with a copy of this morning's newspaper. "Hey Grim," Esk smiled.

"Don't call me that," he barked roughly. Despite his voice and appearance, her neighbor was a friendly man. "Did you see this morning's New York Times?" he asked, holding up the newspaper.

"No, what does it say?" she asked.

"Here," he handed her the newspaper and turned around, "turn to page eighteen." He then shuffled back to his own apartment.

"Strange," she whispered, walking back to the kitchen table. She sat down beside Madeline and opened the paper. She turned to page eighteen and saw red as she read the headline, "Restaurant run by scandalous sinner." With a growl, she began to skim through the article. "...a lesbian woman running a restaurant...foreign wench...such a sinful restaurant is sure not a place I want to eat at...we need to close it down..." Eskarine was seeing red. "It's nothing to worry about," Eskarine said quickly, slamming the paper shut, not wanting her love to know of the cruelties of the world.

"Eskarine, I can read." Madeline glared up at her. "For god's sakes I am older than you. I think I can handle such ridiculous news as this. You don't need to lie to me!" Madeline stood up.

"I know, I just wanted to protect you," Eskarine's temper flared as she stood from the table herself, slamming the chair under the table.

"Well maybe I don't want your protection," Madeline snapped, then looked away. She never liked to say harsh words and now...

Eskarine shook her head and ran over to Madeline. She pulled her into her arms and the two women sobbed. "How can they do this to you? You're the sweetest person I know. So what if you're not straight, what does it matter?" She choked out.

"Why can't they just accept us for who we are?" Madeline sobbed, shoulders shaking. That was a good question. Why did it matter? Eskarine had no answer to this and nothing to say to comfort her love. Instead, she just held her close.

ooo

Madeline had bitter tears streaming down her face as she placed a "For Sale" sign in the window of her beloved restaurant. The bad review had been enough to keep business away and the restaurant had gone bankrupt. Madeline walked back home as a light flurry of snow began to powder the streets. The soft flakes stirred as her booted feet walked delicately through the sidewalk. She shivered in her fur coat, designed especially for her by her love. Tears continued to roll down her cheeks as she walked in front of a flower shop. The owner was hurriedly trying to bring the plants in before they would die. Madeline didn't notice and stepped on a red tulip the man had dropped, crushing it under her feet.

She arrived to the apartment complex and took the elevator up. She knew things were not going well on Eskarine's side either. They had been fighting more and more lately due to the frustration of being in the public's disapproving eye. It had all started because of that game she had played. Madeleine could only wonder how it would all end. What would become of their relationship? What would become of their careers? The elevator finally reached their floor and she stepped out. She heard voices coming through the door and listened in.

"Your last few designs haven't sold well at all and I can't figure out why! My goodness you were so popular only a few months ago and now, well, just look at the stats. We've had to lower the prices for any of them to sell. I can't understand this." The squeaky voice of the manager trailed through the door.

"It's because of this damn scandal! I just don't understand people." Eskarine had never sounded so small before.

"Well, I love your designs and will keep you on, but we've got to come up with something. I've got to run so call me. And actually call me this time! Last time you said you would and then oh so conveniently remembered four days later."

"Okay," Esk sighed with a slight, forced laugh.

The door opened suddenly and Madeleine jumped back. "Oh, good day to you Miss Madeleine," the manager tipped his hat before scurrying into the elevator.

"You were listening in, weren't you?" Eskarine accused, glaring at Madeleine. "I'm going to go play PWO." Eskarine grabbed the helmet. Madeline stopped her, placing her hand on Esk's arm.

"We need to talk about this. The restaurant is finished, your designs are selling low, and we seem to do nothing but fight lately."

"And I suppose all this is my fault, huh?" Eskarine growled.

"No, I'm not saying that," Madeline tried her best to keep her temper in check. Outside the light snow was turning to rain. Definitely not the best of driving conditions.

"Then what are you saying?" Eskarine stood up with her face merely inches from Madeleine's.

Madeleine's brow twitched and she grabbed the helmet from Aura. "If you ask me, it's all that damn game's fault," she growled, slamming the helmet to the ground. Esk watched it bounce once and roll under the desk like a wounded chicken.

"You little bitch!" Esk shouted, knocking her chair over in her frustration.

"Don't call me a bitch you greasy American!" Madeleine shouted, surprising herself with her choice of words.

"Why did I ever ask you to stay here with me?" she growled before thinking. She knew she had gone too far.

Madeleine turned and walked towards the door. "I need to clear my head," She said in a voice that was deathly calm.

"Wait, Madeleine, I'm sor-" Esk didn't get to finish as Madeleine slammed the door shut behind her. Eskarine picked the chair up and sat down. How could she have been so stupid to have said that? Madeleine had given up everything to stay with her in New York and this was how she repaid her? She leaned back and looked out at the rain and snow covered streets. She saw Madeleine walking rapidly and then crossing the street.

Eskarine's world then seemed to stand still.

The roads icy and the rain making everything slick wasn't helping matters much either. A car lost control and plowed into Madeleine. Esk felt her heart drop ten miles. She flew out of the apartment and down the elevator to where Madeleine was. Several people were gathered and a few had phoned the hospital, but it was too late. Eskarine pushed and shoved her way through the crowd to where Madeleine was. The car was on the sidewalk a few yards away. "Madeline?" Eskarine tried, her voice choked with tears.

Madeleine moved her eyes to show that she heard. She looked at Eskarine and feebly tried to form words. Eskarine held her as the life faded from her. "I guess my vacation has ended," she heard Madeleine mumble barely audible as the life left her.

"No, Madeleine, no," Eskarine kept saying over and over again as the icy rain stung her body. Why couldn't it drain her own life away? "I love you so much." She hugged what had been Madeleine as her body shook with sobs. Her life and her love had been taken from her all so a stupid company could whore their selves out to millions of potential gamers. "Don't go..."

ooo

The funeral was held a few days later. Only a few friends were invited, including Eskarine's manager, but that didn't stop dozens of paparazzi from showing up. Her manager's wife had predicted this would happen and had told her husband to hire bodyguards for the occasion. Usually she only had bodyguards when she went to a design showing or other events such as that, but she felt that they were necessary and she was right. They held off the paparazzi as well as they could, but that didn't stop them from taking pictures.

Eskarine didn't even notice them. She was too enrapt in her own sadness. She didn't notice anything from the world around her; only the box in the hole in the ground that now held the one who had been her life and love. The funeral was short and a blur to Eskarine who was heartbroken and full of grief. She walked slowly back to her car, the bodyguards and paparazzi following. One of them managed to make it past the bodyguards and he ran over to her with his camera shouting, "Eskarine, would you answer a fe-" his words were caught in his throat as she punched him in the nose as hard as she could manage, breaking his nose and leaving her hand seriously bruised.

She didn't care what happened to him and left the funeral as fast as she could. The hardest part of the day was returning to her apartment and knowing that she would spend the rest of her life there alone.

ooo

"Aura, you've got to think through this!" Zero shouted after Aura as she walked briskly from the building. "Think of all the great things that are left to do in the top ten."

Aura turned fiercely, her voice cracking as she spoke, "I refuse to be a part of this. This company now has blood on their hands and I refuse to be a part of them."

"But Aura!" Zero protested, running after her.

"Leave her be," Satoshi called out, causing the two to stop and turn. "She doesn't have to be part of us if she does not want to. No one is forcing you to stay," he said as he turned his attention to Aura.

"And I won't stay for your damn company. You have blood on your hands you murderous bastard! If it weren't for you, Madeline and I would still be together!" Aura shouted, turning to face Satoshi. It was funny to think how a few months ago, she wasn't able to look into the man's eyes.

"Now now, name calling won't solve anything." Satoshi grinned deviously as he pulled a red tulip from his inventory and held it in front of him as he watched Aura's expression of pure hatred. He broke the tulip in half, throwing it to the ground, and then he called an Abra to his side and teleporting away.

"That ass hole," Aura cussed, fiercely plowing down the hallway.

"Aura," Zero called after her retreating form, but she didn't even acknowledge him. She turned the corner and used a warp stone to return to the starting area.

"Good bye Sparia," she sighed as she patted the soft down of her Empoleon. Sparia cooed and nodded her head. Aura then logged out for the last time.

ooo

For the next several months, Eskarine was in a deep state of depression. Her designs completely stopped and she rarely left her apartment. She would go through the things Madeline had left behind and cry as she held each of them in her hands. She kept a photo in her wallet which she would stare at for most of the day. She spent hours trying to remember everything she could; the way she laughed, the things she had worn, the way she wore her hair, the way she seemed to melt in her arms, and the way her lips felt against hers.

Living alone was maddening, but one day Eskarine woke up, took a shower, brushed her hair, and picked up a pair of scissors. She designed a handbag with a French flare and smiled--for the first time in months--at what she had just finished. She picked up the phone and dialed the number of her manager. "Hello?" she heard him squeak.

"I just finished a design for a handbag. I thought you might be interested," she said casually.

"ESKARINE!" he shouted so loudly she had to hold her phone from her ear a few inches. "Oh dear, it's been ages. I'll be over as soon as I can to check it out. It's so good to hear from you!" he shouted excitedly. She smiled and hung up on him. He stared at the phone and then shook his head with a smile. "That's the Eskarine we all know and love," he laughed as he finished getting ready.

ooo

She had not forgotten Madeline, but she had finally learned to live again. She spent her time walking the streets of New York City and enjoying life. The public was thrilled she had started designing again and her designs were selling better than ever.

Eskarine smiled as she leaned back in her desk chair after eating a salad feeling comfortably full. She then noticed her gaming helmet. Picking it up off the ground, she wiped the dust from it and set it on her desk. She hadn't played PWO since Madeline's death. She sat there staring at the helmet for a few minutes before picking it up and placing it on her head. "Just one quick check up," she decided. She was, after all, still paying for the game so she may as well play it for a little bit.

After the start up screen faded, she found herself in the starter fields where she had logged out all that time ago. Sparia cleared her throat. Aura turned to see Sparia narrowing her eyes and tapping her foot as if to say "Where the hell have you been?" Aura laughed and hugged her partner.

Once again, she was hooked.

ooo

End Part 27

Darn it, now I want to go to New York . I always have, but now... Anyways, I really do hope you love this Moymoy 3 Don't worry, I'll save the Grim story for another filler to keep readers on the edge of their seats

- love ya all

I need a hug after writing that :( so much sadness ;;


	28. Gift of the Gods

Pokémon World Online

Part 28: Gift of the Gods

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual stuff and I don't own Gandalf... YAY for continuing the plot. No more fillers. Well, technically there was only one and I felt a bit of background was necessary. So...yah. This part is dedicated to Satoshi Tajiri. The real one's rather nice while the one in the fic be evil X3 so yeah, sorry about that Tajiri-san. And to tick off Drix, this part will also be dedicated to Moya. Ya gotta love her. Okay, enough ranting, onward to the fic.

ooo

Falling. Twilmer knew she was falling, though very slowly. A dark abyss spanned the horizons and who knew if it ever ended. The only light was the one located somewhere above her and guiding her path downwards. The pace she was going was agonizingly slow, but this didn't matter to her for time was insignificant. She would get to where ever she was going eventually and that was all that mattered. She felt more as if she were floating rather than falling, but that didn't matter. Nothing mattered anymore except for the moment. The fur stood up on her arms as if she were cold. In fact she was neither. She was nothing.

"What's going on?" Twilmer asked in her mind, though the voice in her head seemed to echo forever into the far reaches of the endless abyss. Her eyes were closed and she made no movement as she fell. She was unnaturally still.

"She was obsessed with the game, much as you are now, my friend." Arceus appeared next to her, falling with her--or was he guiding her? "She then tried to find everything out about the world she possibly could, including its coding and sources and such, but the coding she found was impossible. The coding was so deep and layered that there was no way for any man or group of men to have computed such a world." Arceus's reply answered nothing yet everything at the same time.

"What do you mean?" the echoes seemed to meld together and blend into one. the darkness didn't seem quite so dark now that Arceus was beside her, providing a silver glow of his own. Twilmer was unsure how she knew what was going on around her as her eyes were closed, but she didn't care. She didn't even care that the whole situation she was in now was rather unlikely, but then again that didn't matter.

It seemed to take ages for Arceus to answer once again, but time was not important anymore. The two had all the time in the world. "This world is based on a real world out there somewhere. Coding can only take you so far in designing such massive worlds and such complex as characters as Pokémon. All ideas come from something already pre-existent; as I'm sure you've heard... Dream only melded the two realities together in a way I'm not sure of. Humans, you know." Arceus excused himself, reminding Twilmer greatly of Gandalf.

"Dream must've loved the world," Twilmer smiled.

"You love this world," Arceus nodded. Twilmer had to agree. She and Dream were rather alike, weren't they?

"So why is she trying to destroy it now?" Twilmer asked.

"Well, Dream became so obsessed with the game and, unlike you who has a butler to feed you and tend to your needs, began discovering this world's secrets. She forgot to take care of herself. She died of malnutrition, starvation, sleep deprivation, bladder complications as she rarely used the bathroom, and the list goes on. The sad thing is that no one came to look for her body and it sat there." Arceus crossed his fore hooves and lay beside Twilmer in the air. "Or so I've come to understand. Humans have never been my specialty."

"For someone who doesn't know humans, you sure know a lot," Twilmer said, but how he knew was not important. It was what he knew that mattered.

"There was a fire," Arceus continued without answering Twilmer, "in the apartment that she lived in caused by the computer overheating after so many days of being on. Unlike your high tech cooling system you installed, she had one of the first computer models and after being on for a week, it overheated and caused a fire. Somehow during the melding of decayed flesh and hard drive, a spark connected the two and the Dream we know now woke up in the online world of Pokémon." Arceus stood, stretching.

"She's alive in the game? Am I the same way?" Twilmer asked, unsure of anything.

"No, you simply passed out in real life. You are not dead because I do not feel it is your time to die. I am the god of Pokémon, and as such, I have a certain power over you." Arceus looked over at his fuzzy companion with a smile.

"How do you know so much about her?" Twilmer asked.

"We both should not exist--her and I--and we are direct opposites. In a way, we depend on each other," Arceus closed his eyes. Twilmer didn't understand, but she knew Arceus would not offer any more for an answer.

"Why does she hate me and my party? Why did the glitch affect me the way it did? What happened to her after she found herself revived?" Twilmer asked.

Arceus smiled with his eyes. "So many questions. I will answer them for you next time."

"Next time?" Twilmer puzzled.

"Next time," Arceus nodded. "Take this pendant," Arceus made a Pichu-shaped pendant of solid gold appear around her neck. "Use that if you should ever want to be a Pichu again."

"What are you-" Twilmer began to say as she opened her eyes. As she opened them, she found herself back on the nightmare-ish Firewall mountain. She blinked and rubbed her eyes, her skin feeling smooth under her hands...hands?!?! Twilmer looked down at herself and noticed that she was returned to her grace master glory down to her purple leotard, white knee boots, and fur-cuffed white coat with gold and silver embroidery. She reached back and felt her silver hair was tied back in its usual, lose ponytail. "I'm me?" Twilmer looked incredulously at herself.

Twilmer ran towards the group with the grace and agility she had missed. "WEA!" Victoria shouted, jumping into Twilmer's arms. Twilmer smiled for the first time in ages and swung Victoria around. She then set her partner back down and the two turned as Derek stepped before her; sword raised.

"Welcome back. I've missed you so much," he smiled at her, flashing her a smile that still seemed to make her insides swim, but something about finally being back in her true form strengthened Twilmer.

"Sorry I can't say the same. I won't let you have power over me any longer," Twilmer lashed out with her staff; hitting him in his stomach as hard as she could. He fell and returned to the depths of the nightmare from whence he had come.

She saw her party gathered around Aura and ran over to them. They looked over at her, half of them not recognizing her, but Drix just shook his head as Twilmer stepped forward. "About fucking time," Drix smirked as Twilmer stepped forward. She smiled at him and turned to look at the entire party, which scared her more then she would admit. All of them seemed worse for wear, and Aura was crying. This simple fact snapped Twilmer back into the reality she had stepped into. A lump formed in the back of Twilmer's throat as she felt several emotions beat on her at the same time.

"Aura?" Twilmer asked quietly. Aura turned her face towards the voice and saw Twilmer. Twilmer knelt down and the two women embraced. Aura sniffled and quieted her sobs. Twilmer patted her on the back until their awkward hug was over.

"I needed a hug," Aura sighed not even caring how out of character that was for her. "Thanks," a small, weak smile crossed her face. "Looking good," she gave Twilmer a thumbs up.

"You bet she is! I guess I can't call you Miss Pichu anymore," Emily23 smiled, giving Twilmer a hug too.

"Come on you guys, lay off the touchy-feely crap. How dare you hug your admin like this. This is so undignified!" Twilmer grumped as Emily23 continued to hug her. When she let go, Twilmer brushed herself off as if Emily23 had germs, but the small smile on her face showed that she was enjoying the attention.

"Twilmer," Helium turned towards her; voice raw from crying himself. "I couldn't--I wasn't there for you." Helium couldn't even bring himself to look into her eyes.

"Well if you had been there for me, I wouldn't be my normal self, now would I?" Twilmer twirled around, showing off her normal form. Helium smiled, feeling a bit of a nosebleed coming on.

"Yeah, I suppose so," he sighed, sounding tired. An awkward silence followed as the two looked at each other.

"Oh what the hell," Twilmer sighed, giving Helium a small hug. She had to admit that she enjoyed this. The two parted blushing.

"And what about me?" Drix smirked, holding out his arms.

"You even dare come near me and I'll show you just what I can do with this staff," Twilmer growled at him, holding her staff up menacingly.

Aura sat on the ground silently and browsed through her inventory for healing items. Sparia had found her swords that the nightmare image of Madeline had thrown away. The Empoleon looked worried about her partner. The other worrying look came from Drix, who chose wisely not to speak to her for the time being.

She grabbed the first potion she could find and passed it around the group. They each took a swig and healed the wounds their nightmares had inflicted on them.

"Where's Dream?" Trellaine asked, snapping the party back to reality. They looked around and noticed that the woman was nowhere to be found. It seemed becoming aware of this fact was a trigger as Firewall lost its nightmare look and returned to normal around them. They all sighed in relief. "You know," Trellaine pondered with a hand to his chin, "this place is protected from PWO because of the barriers. We could build a castle or a farm here and never have to worry about the outside world. We could build up an army and strike Dream when it's most opportune to us."

"Yeah, and that would take time which we don't have. As much as we are connected to this game, I don't plan on spending my whole life here. We can't just leave our real lives and bodies unprotected and play house over here. Even if we look like one big fucking family." She laughed a bit hysterically and hearing her voice crack down, Aura fell silent again.

"Bah, you're right." Trellaine cleared his throat and turned his attention back to Twilmer. He got out his digital keyboard and began typing away. "It seems the glitch is completely gone. I can't detect a trace of it anywhere--oh wait, there's a small hint in that pendant, but not enough to cause worry. It seems as if 'dying' has removed the glitch from you. It seems you accomplished the mission you set out to achieve in the first place." Trellaine chuckled sourly. "Can I have a look at that pendant?" Trellaine asked, holding his hand out. Twilmer nodded and took it off--only to find herself staring at Trellaine's boots.

"BLAST IT ALL!" Twilmer shouted. She put the pendant back on and was looking at Trellaine's face once more. "How about I don't give this pendant to you and say I did."

"Fine, if you want it that way," Trellaine looked slightly disappointed, but he could understand Twilmer's reasoning.

"I can't believe I'm still cursed with this Pichu-dom," Twilmer sighed.

"Maybe you can make some use of that," Emily23 suggested, holding up a finger, Bunneary beside her mimicking her.

Twilmer considered this for a second, and then shook her head. "That's a stupid idea," she scowled. Emily23 shrugged with a smile on her face, which greatly annoyed Twilmer.

"More iced tea?" Twila's Butler asked in real life.

"Yes, iced tea would be grand," Twila responded, however she forgot to remove the microphone when she spoke.

"More iced tea? The fuck?" Drix raised an eyebrow at her.

"Sorry, forgot to take the microphone form my face. My butler is getting me something to drink." Twilmer said as if it were normal for nineteen year old girls to have butlers.

"You have a butler?" Trellaine seemed to ponder the possibilities of an obedient outsider, but Twilmer cut his thoughts short.

"Okay, so far we are in the only safe haven from PWO Corp, who seems to have lost control of their coding for this game. Dream is dead in real life, somehow alive in this life, and has gone mentally insane...if she has a mentality in game. How does a spirit live in game? ARGH! Arceus said this place had become real and became connected with its real life counterpart or some shtick like that." Twilmer muttered, not making much sense and mostly talking to herself anyways.

"Okay, great leader," Drix said, mouth dripping with sarcasm, "what the fuck are we supposed to do now?"

"Now, I say we take things one at a time. We leave Firewall and pursue Dream. She usually finds us, and she's weak at the moment, so it shouldn't be too hard to take that bitch down once and for all. Then we tackle the top ten, PWO corp., and whoever opposes us. Next we solve this whole "coding becoming real" shit. There's also the glitch we have to fix, though I'm sure PWO Corp has more information that they're with holding from us. We take it by force while we sweep them out. They've lost control of their coding so let's kick them while they are down." Twilmer punched her hand into her fist.

"Whatever happened to Miss admin who would never dare hack nor do anything against PWO Corp?" Drix mocked her.

"That girl died when I did." Twilmer's serious response silenced Drix and his teasing. "If I can face my past and get over it, as I have just done, then I can live with never being able to play this game again after we finish. If I die, that's fine, but if I live through this, then I actually want to live. I've been a slave to this game for way too long." Twilmer smirked, feeling more like herself then she ever had before. She never thought she would hear herself saying that she could live without the game. Even now she doubted her words. The look Victoria gave her when she said that made a lump form in her throat. She cleared her throat and her normal look of confidence crossed her face. "I'll transform back into a Pichu using this pendant. PWO Corp can't detect what's happening in here, so they won't know I've gotten my true form back." Twilmer smirked, though the idea of becoming a Pichu again didn't sit well with her.

"Taking down the top ten and PWO Corp? That was tall orders for such a rag-tag party. Sure we can do it?" Drix asked.

"We won't know until we try," Emily23 spoke up, surprising everyone.

"Thank you. Listen to her Drix; she's wiser than you could ever hope to be," Twilmer sneered.

"Why you!" Drix shouted, bringing his sword out; however, Twilmer had kneeled down beside Aura and was ignoring Drix. Aura looked over at her with a confused look on her face.

"Here," Twilmer handed her a flower.

"The hell is this?" Aura asked; her voice still a bit shaky.

"It's the flower of Shaymin and it's an extremely rare item. I want you to have it." Twilmer stood up, brushing dirt off of her white boots. She watched with a smile as the item hunter held the flower in her hands, calculating its rarity.

"Thanks," Aura muttered simply, but it was enough for Twilmer.

"We are, after all, one big fucking family as you put it. A family raises each other up when they are down." Twilmer responded simply back.

"Before we leave Firewall," Drix interrupted the sweet moment that had just occurred, "can we rest, Twilmer? I'm pooped." Drix asked, stretching his arms and back muscles.

Twilmer looked over at Drix with wide eyes. He had said her name, which greatly surprised her. She shook her head and smirked. "This whole 'big fucking family' is making me way too sentimental." Twilmer grinned. "PWO corp. has probably already deleted our data, yet here we stand. They can't do anything anymore. The coding is out of control for them and this online world is becoming real as we speak, merging with some kind of parallel world, or something." Twilmer seemed unsure of herself. Arceus had made sense when she was lingering between life and death, but now his words seemed ridiculous and confusing. The only thing that was clear was that Dream and she were quite similar indeed. "Anyways, my point was that I doubt a night's rest will hinder us."

"You okay?" Helium asked. This had been the second time she seemed to spout senseless thoughts.

"Yeah, just confused," she shrugged as if this were normal, which it slowly was becoming. Twilmer sat down on a rock and stretched her legs, loving the feeling of actually having legs that weren't just feet attached to her torso. "God it feels good to have legs," she grinned.

ooo

End part 28

Rather short, but hey, the plot is now ready to continue. Please review, they make me write faster :P


	29. The Reluctant Return

Pokémon World Online

Part 29: The Reluctant Return

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual stuff. You should know that by now. Holy cow, 29 parts. Next part will be 30 o.o that's the most I have EVER written for anything ever ; Yes, that was in need of two evers. This part is dedicated to all those fic writers who have stuck with their work for the long haul. I salute you guys.

ooo

A slash of clawed hand. A Cold smirk on full lips and flash of sharp teeth underneath. Sweet, sweet voice filling her ears with vicious flow of words, "I love you, why did you kill me?"

Aura yelped quietly trough her nightmare and her eyes snapped open as she sat upright from her place of sleep. She breathed heavily and hugged her knees close to her, trying to push the nightmare away. That was in the past and this was the future. She managed to calm herself and her sleep mutterings didn't appear to have wakened anyone.

Aura thought she was the first awake as she opened her eyes and noticed the party around her still asleep. Twilmer was curled next to a rock and beside Victoria. Sparia slept soundly at her own side. Emily23 and Bunneary were close by, Trellaine was snoozing on the ground near Twilmer, and Drix had fallen asleep leaning against a rock. Aura then noticed she was short one herbalist as she noticed the Vileplume snoozing by itself. She stood and looked around. She then noticed the herbalist near a dead tree, gazing up at the long, gnarled branches. She strode over to him, startling him by the sound her boots made on the stone. "Oh, hi," Helium smiled with a wave.

"Hi there," Aura greeted. No matter how long she had been traveling with the herbalist, his choice of pink robes still greatly amused her. She rolled her shoulders and nearly gasped in pain.

"What's wrong?" Helium asked in a voice full of concern.

"My muscles are so tight from sleeping on the ground, and the wounds don't help any," Aura groaned. The pain sensors connected to this game had gotten too advanced. Then an evil idea popped into her head. "Mind giving me a hand with them?" she asked slyly.

"What do you mean?" Helium asked, and then blushed as Aura walked close to him and turned her back to him and took her shirt off. "Aura?" he asked unsure of himself.

"If you could redress my wounds for me," she grinned slyly, looking back at the boy over her shoulder and enjoying the look of embarrassment on the poor boy's face.

"Umm, well, I suppose I can," Helium mumbled nervously, getting some healing herbs from his bag.

"Also, if you wouldn't mind giving me a shoulder massage while your back there," Aura said slyly, causing Helium to drop his bag of herbs.

"Umm, I..." Helium was speechless, picking his herbs back up, and with shaking hands, half-heartedly massaged Aura's shoulders. He grabbed a bottle of potion and used it in combination with his herbs to massage her wounds gently. He wasn't very good and whenever he went over the wounds, she would wince slightly, but keep her composure and manage not to call out. If this had been Helium, he would have called out a long time ago, but then again he tended to be a bit more emotional than most guys...and apparently girls as well judging from Twilmer and Aura. "I wish I was as strong as you," Helium remarked when he had finished the massage and began to wrap the wounds in herb treated bandages.

"No you don't," Aura sighed, closing her eyes. "I've been through a lot to get where I am. I wouldn't wish my burdens on anyone." She picked up a pebble form the ground and began to move it through her fingers absentmindedly. "I just hope you'll never have to experience some of the pains I've gone through." Aura stood when her bandages were done being fixed and cleared her throat as she slid her shirt and vest back on. "Come on kid, let's head back." Helium nodded, glad to be out of the awkward situation.

ooo

"Yes, more ramen please. No, no horses are allowed," Twilmer muttered in her sleep. She had a bad habit for talking in her sleep, which used to get her in trouble when she was younger. "34 farms in my yard's enough," Twilmer muttered. Aura looked over at her amused as she and Helium arrived back at the camp.

Beside her, Victoria's paws were moving and her face was twitching as if she were running and fighting. Just another sign of how similar the two really were. "Wea," Victoria muttered.

"Aura, more to the left," Twilmer muttered. Aura jerked and looked at the sleeping grace master, who had rolled over and was dangerously close to crushing Victoria underneath her. "That's worth 10 dollars," Twilmer snorted and curled into a little ball. Aura snickered and looked over at Helium who looked very confused.

"Yes, Aura, I love you too, now hand me some gravy." Twilmer snorted again and her breathing began to quicken. Her eyes sprung open and she sat up. "That was a strange dream," she commented to herself sleepily as she was about to lie back down.

"Enlighten me," Aura commented, scaring Twilmer, who jumped. She cursed slightly as she stood. "Such a graceful grace master," Aura teased. Twilmer gave her an extremely dirty look. "Anyways, the dream?" Aura demanded more than asked.

"My dream? Well, it was strange, Jeffery, my butler, wanted to have a ramen party, but he kept trying to invite these horses, so I told him to buy farms for them if he wanted them so badly. Well, I invited you guys, and you offered to give me a Pichu tattoo. Then we had steak and I asked you to pass me the gravy." Twilmer concluded simply.

"Uh-huh, yeah, I don't think that that was everything," Aura smirked, teasing the poor admin. Twilmer cleared her throat as she blushed, but didn't say anything.

"Mind if I go and practice for a bit before the others wake up?" she asked, suddenly not wanting to be with the group.

"Be our guest," Aura nodded.

"Victoria, what do you say to a little practice?" Twilmer asked with a yawn. Practice seemed like a good way to get her mind off of things as her head was swimming with thoughts of Dream, Arceus, and everything that had been happening recently. She tried to will the thoughts away, but they kept returning with a vengeance... Victoria grinned and nodded. The two took off, jumping agilely about the mountain from rock to rock, meeting claw and staff when their paths crossed. Twilmer felt at complete bliss as her thoughts ebbed away and she concentrated solely on where the next rock was and where her next foot hold should be. Twilmer slowed and came to a stop, feeling better after finally being able to practice her grace master moves again. "I've still got it," Twilmer grinned cockily.

Ooo

The sunrise was beautiful and the Ho-oh chick added his two cents about his appreciation as he cawed loudly and noisily, awaking the party members that had still been asleep. "Morning already?" Emily23 groaned as she sat up, rubbing sleep out of her eyes.

"Orange anyone?" Trellaine offered as he sat up, holding out his shoulder for the Ho-oh chick to land on.

Drix opened one eye as he heard the party stir. He grunted. "You know, SOME people still like to sleep," Drix said. He definitely wasn't a morning-person.

"What we disturbed your beauty sleep?" Aura asked with a smirk and her hands on her hips. Drix merely grunted and turned back over to try and recapture sleep.

"This won't do. We'll never leave if he goes back to sleep," Twilmer groaned, and then got a brilliant idea. "Hey Max, how about you wake this bloke up?" Max yawned and fired a water gun at Drix.

Drix jumped up with a yell and stared daggers at Twilmer. "I'm so getting you for that." Drix pulled out his sword; however a grumble from his stomach stopped him. "I'm getting you after breakfast." He narrowed his eyes as he took an orange from Trellaine. Twilmer gave Drix a very rude gesture with her right hand. He merely grunted as he took a bite from the citrus fruit.

ooo

After breakfast had been eaten, Twilmer pulled out the warp stone and prayed to Arceus. She heard a chime sound and the stone glowed slightly. She had figured this would work. The stone had been blessed and would take them to the place where they had warped into Firewall, which meant Greensboro. "Ready guys?" Twilmer asked as she held the stone.

"Time to take that psycho bitch down," Drix swung his sword around before putting into his hilt, very gracefully Twilmer noted.

"About fucking time," Aura smirked, giving her own display with her katanas, wincing slightly in pain.

"Here you go," Helium handed her some herbs. "For your wounds," he elaborated.

"Thanks," Aura smirked, taking them from him.

"Let's get this show on the road," Emily23 bounced up and down eagerly while twirling her pole, Bunneary bouncing beside her.

"Alright then." Twilmer took off her pendant and stashed it into her inventory. PWO Corp didn't know she had been given her true form back and she intended to keep them ignorant in this department. She detested becoming a Pichu again, especially after the lovely training session she had just had, but it had to be done. "Everyone ready?"

"I'm not," Trellaine replied simply. The group looked at him.

"What do you mean?" Twilmer asked irritated; however her recent reinstatement as a Pichu made her much less threatening.

"I've decided to stay here and keep an eye on things. I'm not planning on building an army or anything like that, but I would like to study why this place of all areas was chosen to harbor the glitch," Trellaine said as he scratched the Ho-oh Chick under its chin.

"You sure? We could really use you." Aura looked over at him, but could tell his mind was set.

"I think you guys are more than able to take care of yourselves. I do wish you luck," Trellaine waved. "Oh, and Twilmer," he tossed her a small orb, "use that if you ever need me." Before Twilmer could ask how, the mage had teleported away.

"Hacker," Twilmer muttered as she examined the orb and put it into her inventory. She had to admit that she would miss her old friend even as annoying as he was. "Alright, is anyone else staying?"

"I'll be here for you this time," Helium said softly causing Twilmer to blush.

"Just get on with it," Drix groaned.

"Fine then. Everyone grab a hold of me like before," Twilmer said. She produced the warp stone and everyone got a hold of the tiny, pudgy Pichu. They spun around and when Twilmer next opened her eyes, she had to shut them once more. They were standing in the bright sunlight of the grassy field right outside the town where Ken Sugimori had chased them down. "It's now or never!" Twilmer punched her little fist into the air.

"Let's get that bitch," Drix said eagerly.

ooo

End Part 29

Short, but it gets us to the next part


	30. Rallying the Troops

Pokémon World Online

Part 30: Rallying the Troops

Disclaimer: Chapter 30...holy...cow...o.o; now THAT is a lot of chapters. I don't know how I've managed to do it either oo considering I had a bit of a downtime with this fic, and then dived right back into it. Also, I decided to check the stats and this fic has over 5700 views o.o ohmigawd I feel so loved o3o Oh yeah, I don't own Pokémon, Aura, Drix, the Underground, or anything else that was someone's idea from the RPG. Okees, now for the dedications. This part goes to you, the readers, for keeping me inspired to go to 30 parts and who have stuck with me this far. I give a nod to you 3

ooo

"Now what?" Aura asked, looking around at the green meadow. Greensboro could be seen from where they were standing and she was sure the excitement they had caused had probably not died down much if at all.

"Well, I," Twilmer held up a paw thoughtfully to her chin, "have no idea really." She finished simply.

"Are you kidding me?" Aura narrowed her eyes.

"Never fear, Drix is here." Drix grinned as he looked at the party members. They looked up at him mildly interested. "I can get us some help."

"What kind of help?" Twilmer asked suspiciously.

"Some underground help," Drix announced, looking around him at the shocked expressions.

"You're connected to the underground?" Aura asked in disbelief, pulling her katanas from their hilts.

"What's the underground?" Emily23 asked; Bunneary peering from behind her leg, scared of Aura's katanas. Max yawned.

"It's a group of ragtag hackers that have their own agenda. They pretty much do as they please with no concern for anyone else," Twilmer answered, sparking dangerously. This didn't make sense to Twilmer as usually the Underground had been comprised of low life gamers, or so she had always assumed. Drix was in the nineties, so why would he need the underground? Emily23 looked up at Drix with wide eyes. That would explain his hostility when she had asked who he was messaging, maybe it was the Underground? Despite the fact that being connected to the Underground reeked of betrayal, she doubted Drix would do something like that. Sure he was a little hot-headed at times, not to mention impulsive and reckless, but he didn't seem like the kind of person who would cheat and lie. Right? "Why does that not surprise me," Twilmer shook her head, big yellow ears flapping against her head. "Well, they could prove very useful."

"You're actually agreeing to this?" Aura looked surprised as the admin was a strict rule follower. She lowered her katanas at this and looked over at her in confusion. "Why?"

"Let's just say that PWO Corp can kiss my ass. Screw the rules," Twilmer glared at him and sighed. "Being an administrator for this game was my dream. It was my life. I don't have a life outside of this game because I alienated myself. I was weak in real life which is why I strived to become so strong in this game. I've accomplished that, power wise, but I can't be truly strong unless I'm willing to give it all up. It's not just my life anymore, but all of ours and I'm willing to give up everything for my big fucking family."

"What is this, an Oprah special?" Drix smirked. Twilmer grinned right back.

"Yeah, forget half of what I just said. God this whole big fucking family philosophy is getting to me. I'm just in it to kick butt and get my place back," Twilmer smirked.

"That's the admin we all know and love," Aura shook her head. "I guess we don't have any other options, do we?" she asked.

"Not really," Twilmer sighed.

"Well then follow me," Drix waved them on. They followed him as he led them to a small cabin. Emily23 looked up at it, confused as to how a supposed large secret organization could fit in there, but wisely decided to keep her mouth shut. Drix opened the door and proceeded to open the main entrance.

"Nice," Twilmer commented as the wall melted away. The group shambled down the stairs and after what seemed forever, came to another door. This one had guards on either side.

"Since when do we need guards?" Drix asked with a frown. Drix decided to ignore them and walk by until they stopped him.

"Drix, you know the rules, no outsiders allowed without an appointment," the guard scolded.

"This is Twilmer and her party and they are with me." Drix glared at them, daring them to say anything against him. The two shuffled their feet and began to whisper.

"I didn't know you were bringing Twilmer. Are things really this bad now?" One of the guards asked.

"This isn't business for the lowly grunts," Drix snapped. The guards jumped and stood out of the way to let Drix pass. As soon as the last party member, Max, had stepped through the door, it automatically shut behind them. "Welcome to the Underground," Drix announced, holding out a hand. The group marveled at the interior. Vast pillars lined hallways webbing out in every direction for miles. They were so long that the other side wasn't visible even when they squinted. "Not too shabby, eh?"

"This place is huge," Emily23 breathed. Beside her, Bunneary's awe matched hers; however the small rabbit wasn't intentionally mimicking her this time. "How did you guys build...er...program all of this?" she asked.

"You can thank Dream for this. Back when we still had our old leader, he had always wanted a place where gamers could hang out and have no regards for the rules. He also wanted a way to easily connect all corners of PWO so that one wouldn't have to traverse the game world to get to one area. There were some other things as well, I'm sure. Anyways, Dream decided to make his dreams come true. That's pretty much the story of the underground," Drix explained.

"Really?" Emily23 asked, her interest suddenly gone. Twilmer's ears perked up at this. So Dream had created the underground? It didn't surprise her. There was still so much she wanted to learn about Dream's history. It fascinated her in a way that scared her. She sometimes found herself feeling compassion for Dream, but had to shake her head to stop those feelings. This was the cold-blooded woman who had tried to kill them all and who had made Aura cry. At this thought, hatred for Dream replaced the compassion she had felt seconds before.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Aura asked, looking over at Drix skeptically.

"I'm sure it will. It's all a matter of ranks here and who you know. Fortunately I'm near the top of the ladder here," Drix smirked.

"Why does that not make me feel any better?" Aura groaned.

They followed Drix down a hallway until they came to a man with a halbadier on his back. "Yo Maple," Drix greeted.

"Drix!" The man looked shocked as he turned, "I thought you weren't going to report back until--is that Twilmer and her party?" Maple asked.

"Yes it is. We're in need of some help." Drix looked seriously at his friend.

"What does he mean by report back?" Aura asked with a raised eyebrow, but before Drix could answer, a dart whizzed by her head. Drix lazily deflected it as he pulled out his sword faster than the game's programming could detect.

"Hi Luna," Drix said lazily.

"Damn you," she cursed, spitting on the ground and stomping over to them. "Why the hell are you back so soon anyways?"

"So soon? So this is where you had to scamper off to when we were taking care of PWO corp.," Twilmer turned an accusing eye to him.

"Seems Drixy here has a few secrets, doesn't it?" Luna hissed, picking her dart up from the ground.

"Anyways," Drix continued, ignoring Luna, "I think we need to have a meeting. It seems there has been a change in plans none of us could have foreseen." Maple nodded and disappeared into the room next to him. A few minutes later an announcement for the elite to gather in the meeting room was hear through the building. "Thanks," Drix nodded his head as Maple stepped out of the room.

"Don't mention it; it's my job after all," Maple said rather stiffly. Drix could tell something was bothering the man; however he didn't push the matter as Maple wasn't one to open up easily. The party followed Luna, Maple, and Drix to the meeting room, which wasn't that far away. They stood at the entrance since the doors were still locked.

"Hi guys," two gamers greeted the group. They appeared to be completely identical as did their Kirlia partners. The Kirlia waved to Drix who nodded at them. Soon other gamers had gathered. Twilmer assumed these to be the top of the ladder members as Drix had put it. Considering everyone was still standing outside, Twilmer figured that the leader of this band of misfits had yet to arrive. No sooner had this thought entered her mind when a woman stepped into view. She walked briskly towards the door and ran her finger down the length of it. The door creaked then swung open.

"I see you've changed the locks again," Drix whispered to Maple. "What's with the upped security?"

"That's not a matter to be discussed now," the woman addressed coldly. Drix instantly shut up, which surprised Twilmer.

"Who's she?" Twilmer asked.

"I am Serena and leader of this organization until the rightful leader gets back--if ever. I know you have been an admin and are used to a certain amount of respect, but then again, so am I and I suggest you show it to me." Serena spoke as she walked to the head of the table. A man in a Lucario mask stood beside her. "Xate, be prepared to record every word at this meeting. Something tells me that this is going to be one of our most important meetings yet." Xate nodded and prepared his keyboard and sound recorder. Twilmer didn't like to be recorded and she certainly didn't like Serena, but she knew better than to open her mouth. "Ziac, close the door if you don't mind."

"Aye aye, captain," Ziac saluted as he turned and shut the door. It closed with an ominous click that made Twilmer suddenly feel trapped like a rat. She technically was a rat which made it all the more worse. Aura was especially nervous as she recognized a few members in the room from the bounty boards she used to check before joining Twilmer's party. She was especially suspicious of the one known as Xate. She wasn't exactly sure, but she could swear she had seen a bounty for him that had one of the highest rewards she had ever encountered. She could be mistaken, but something told her that she wasn't. The only thing keeping her there was the need to finally have a plan to end everything once and for all.

"So, why has this meeting been called?" Serena asked, looking at Drix.

"Mainly, we need help. PWO Corp has ruthlessly attacked this party while I was at our last meeting. I tried to report this, but I was interrupted during my mail. Anyways, we encountered Dream in Firewall and she managed to nearly kill Twilmer. She vanished and my guess is that she's headed to PWO corp., though I'm not sure. Anyways, we have decided to go to PWO Corp on the off chance that they aren't expecting us back so soon after our last encounter there. Chances are that they'll still be prepared just in case. We need numbers. If we plan on striking PWO Corp and over throwing that villainous bastard Satoshi, then we'll need help." Drix pounded his fist on the table to emphasis his point.

"That's a tall order from a spy," Luna spat.

"Spy?" Aura's voice cut through Drix like a knife.

"Not so much spy as a helpful guide." Drix shrugged. Aura's mouth hung open for a second as she was about to say something, then decided against it. She turned away from Drix and looked straight forward at Serena, not one bit intimidated.

"Peace," Serena sighed. "It seems things have gotten way out of hand. I never dreamed that what began with a simple glitch would lead to a murderous with a passion for fulfilling people's dreams and an entire corporation turning on its players like this. I think your request is reasonable and I also think numbers alone won't be enough, which is why I feel it will be necessary for the majority of our elite members to accompany you." Drix's head jerked up as he stared at Serena in disbelief. She had never complied with one of his requests so readily. "All I ask is that you give us a day to assess the situation and figure out the best plan for attack."

"Sounds reasonable," Drix rubbed his chin and looked at Twilmer.

"Yeah, sure, why not," she sighed. She had been hoping to leap into action as soon as possible so she could rid herself of her Pichu guise. Oh well, she supposed one more day couldn't hurt.

"Now, Drix if I could speak to you in private about the details. Everyone else is free to go," she ordered.

"What? We've never had a meeting this short. Is that all?" Ziac asked, surprised.

"The meeting isn't exactly short, but you're part of the meeting has come to an end. Twilmer, I will probably need to see you soon. Xate, come with us and keep the recorder on." With that, Serena entered the room behind her without waiting for anyone to respond. Drix followed her and the door slammed shut behind them.

"Bitch," Twilmer grumbled. "Are meetings always this short?"

"Nah, usually they can go on for hours," Ziac yawned.

"What did you mean by spy?" Aura asked Luna, narrowing her eyes at the woman.

Luna smirked, "I meant exactly what I said. Why do you think Drix, an Elite underground member and of the top ten ranks, would even join your party otherwise? He was spying on Twilmer to see if we could make use of this glitch. Albeit his reports eventually got far and few between, but the point is that he only joined your party to spy on her." She pointed at Twilmer with a smirk on her face.

"He was sent to spy on me?" Twilmer asked, ears drooping. Just when she had started to like the swordsman...something always came up.

"Hey, knock it off Luna," Ziac glanced at her, "I mean Drix was sent to help you guys. His passing on of information wasn't that often and it was just so we could help out."

"Lying is one of the most detestable sins, Ziac," Luna sneered, "or did you forget." Ziac kept his mouth shut. "I'm out," Luna waved and disappeared around a corner.

"I guess I can take you guys to the relaxation hub where we usually go to chill out after a major battle," Ziac said unsure of himself. The party didn't say anything as they followed his brisk pace.

Twilmer huffed and puffed, exhausted. "Humph" Twilmer responded, toddling next to Victoria who resisted the urge to laugh at Twilmer, who had still not gotten the hang of rushing forward with Pichu legs. "I swear Pichu are the worst anatomically designed Pokémon ever" Emily23 laughed at that, which made Twilmer grin. With that bit of humor, the tension seemed to lessen as they followed Ziac into the hub.

ooo

End part 30

Please review, they make me write faster :3


	31. Secrets in the Night

Pokémon World Online

Chapter 31: Secrets in the Night

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. I'm so sorry this is so late ; I've gotten addicted to the Sims II XD This part is dedicated to the lovely people who put up with my Sims rants. You guys know who you are. And I realized that I'd been neglecting Helium a bit lately ;

ooo

"Drix, why didn't you tell us things were getting this bad?" Serena glared at him with her cold eyes.

"How could I? I was too busy trying to protect Twilmer, Aura, and the others. It's not like I was sitting in the sun and having a strawberry daiquiri as servants attended to my every whim. I was risking my life for this organization." Drix glared at her, though not at her eyes as he still couldn't bring himself to look her in the eyes.

"You've never risked your neck for something like this before; especially since this is something going against the top ten and your little party." Serena looked at him as if trying to read his mind.

"News flash, Serena, I've been a member of both the underground and the top ten for a long time now, so don't use that against me. What are you getting at?"

"Never mind," Serena cleared her throat as she walked over to a bookcase behind her. "Which are you most loyal to?" she asked conversationally as she pulled a book from the shelf and began thumbing through it.

"As of right now the underground, but I like having benefits from both," Drix grinned, speaking truthfully.

"Yes, I assumed as much," Serena commented idlely as her attention was on the book. "Ahh, here's the one. 'Then there's Aura...' and you trailed off." Drix felt the blood run from his face. " 'Yes, I know, but Aura was fully aware I was submitting information to some outside source, I believe.' Yet if you ask me, she seemed very surprised to learn you were a spy and part of the underground."

"But wait, I-" Drix was cut off.

"And then Luna said 'you wanted to protect her because you have feelings for her,' and to which you responded, 'That is going too far'." Serena snapped the book shut and held it out for Xate to place back on the shelf. "Now I ask you again, which are you most loyal to?" Drix swallowed hard as he watched Serena look at him like a cat who had cornered a mouse. "Just as I thought. You'd leave the underground in a second if it were to protect your precious party or," Serena placed a finger to her chin thoughtfully, "Aura."

"What does this have to do with anything?" Drix asked. He hated feeling trapped and right now he was seething.

"Nothing important really, but I just find it interesting how close you've gotten to them in such a short amount of time when you've been with the underground for years and never have shown this much loyalty to us. Any particular reason why?"

"What can I say," Drix sighed, running a hand through his hair, "they're a bunch of loveable idiots. They're kind of like Ziac, except there are four of them and only one of him. I will stay loyal to the underground, though. I don't see any reason for that to change in the future."

"What if it came down to my life versus Aura's? Then what would you do?" Serena looked up at Drix.

"Well...I...I'd choose you of course." Drix figured he may as well say what she wanted to hear.

"Interesting," she nodded to Xate, who nodded back to her. "That's all. Now go send Twilmer to me," she waved Drix away.

"Gladly." Drix walked out of the room, glad the little interview was over.

ooo

Aura sat on one of the sofas with a sigh, crossing her arms across her chest. So much had happened and her mind was swimming with thoughts of everything that had recently happened. She was so deep into her thoughts that she was startled when she felt something hit her leg. She looked down and saw a small paper ball. "What is this?" Aura asked.

"Bunnee," Bunneary looked up at her bouncing up and down.

"What does it want?" Aura asked, moving the paper ball back and forth and watching in mild amusement as the Bunneary's eyes followed the ball.

"She wants to play with you," Emily23 smiled, clasping her hands together.

"I don't think so," Aura dropped the small ball on the floor. Bunneary's ears drooped slightly. "Besides I'm not that fond of rabbits or any animals for that matter," Aura put a thoughtful finger to her lip, "except for penguins and small rodents." Sparia ruffled her feathers proudly and Twilmer blushed a light shade of pink and then smirked up at the warrior. Aura smiled back when Drix walked into the room. An uneasy tension followed him as he stepped forward.

"Twilmer, Serena would like to speak with you, if you don't mind." Once again, the use of her name caused Twilmer to look up confused at the warrior, but she didn't say anything as she waddled out of the room. Drix slumped into one of the chairs and rubbed his forehead.

"What's wrong?" Emily23 asked.

"Serena can sometimes be too smart for her own good," Drix sighed hoarsely, but offered no other explanation. Aura looked over at him and opened her mouth a few times before deciding against speaking to him all together. They had to be here for a night, so whatever she had to say could wait.

"You know," Emily23 mused, "my mom hates it when I stay on this game for long periods of time, yet we've been online for nearly two days straight and she has yet to say anything to me. It's not that I'm worried or anything, but I was just thinking about how life is going on in the outside world while we fight for this world."

"It's the way the world works, actually," Helium spoke barely above a whisper. "Every little experience is a microcosm. Like my so called friend threatening me because I'm one of the better soccer players and they need me to win the game or something. He just wants to keep getting the girls, but even though this situation seems big to me, life is going on in the outside world and no one will ever know of this little conflict except a small number of people. Same with a lot of other situations."

"I didn't know you were a philosopher," Drix commented. "And besides, if that bitch Dream is as demented as she says, then not only is PWO in danger, but perhaps something greater. Who knows," Drix shrugged, closing his eyes. "Now enough thinking and try to get some rest. We have one hell of a battle ahead of us and we need to take advantage of this time of rest."

ooo

"Serena," Twilmer glared up at the woman with her black, beady eyes as she entered the room where Serena and Xate were waiting. She judged form the state that Drix had been in that this conversation would not be easy.

"Come on in, Twilmer. Would you like an elixir?" Serena asked, motioning to a tray of healing items on her desk. She made a motion to Xate and he cut the recording. Twilmer saw this and narrowed her eyes.

Twilmer considered the green bottle, and then shook her head. "I'm good for the moment, thank you," she said in a cool, controlled voice. As an admin, she could be intimidating if the moment so called for it.

"Ahh, that is too bad. Well, I'm sure you're wondering why I called you in here. You see, I was just wondering...can I pet you?" This caught Twilmer off guard.

"Wha?" she looked up shocked.

"My favorite Pokémon is Pichu, but no one would respect me if they knew that here. I've always wanted to pet a Pichu, and I know you probably would find it degrading to be held, so I just want to pet you." This was the mighty Serena that even intimidated Drix?

"Sure, I guess it's okay." Twilmer looked up at Serena, who knelt down and rubbed Twilmer's head. Twilmer couldn't help but let out a small purr of pleasure. "Okay, that's enough." Twilmer batted her hand away after a bit. Serena smiled down at Twilmer, who couldn't help but grin herself.

"That is all; you can go back to your party now." Serena cleared her throat, then turned around. "And if you ever utter this to anyone, you'll be sorry."

"Don't worry, I wouldn't want anyone to know about this," Twilmer muttered embaressed as she left.

ooo

"How'd it go?" Aura asked as Twilmer entered the room with a faint blush on her cheeks.

"It went really well. Serena and I got a lot of ground covered." Twilmer coughed and plopped down beside Helium on one of the couches. Victoria looked up at her questionably. Twilmer blushed a deeper shade of red under the stare of her partner.

Drix snorted. "It sounds like you two got awfully chummy in the short time you were gone." He didn't even open his eyes and when he spoke, Emily23 jumped since she assumed that he was asleep.

"Anyways, now what?" Twilmer asked blatantly avoiding providing an explanation.

"Now you rest," Ziac answered sitting down himself in an unoccupied chair. "The twins are preparing some rooms for you guys to sleep in tonight. I think all of us could use a nice night's sleep. Lord knows I could." He stretched and placed his hands behind his head. Indeed, there wasn't much they could do for the moment except wait.

ooo

"The beds are ready," Luna commented lazily as she strutted into the room an hour later. "Serena says all of you should try and get some sleep now because we're heading out first thing tomorrow morning to kick PWO Corp ass." Luna turned to leave, then quick as a flash, threw a dart at Drix who lazily blocked it with his sword. "Damn you," she hissed as she stomped away from the room.

"Why does she keep trying to kill you if both of you are top members?" Twilmer asked him as they followed Ziac towards their rooms.

"It's a long story," Drix sighed.

"Luna fancies Drix," Ziac laughed.

"If she does, she sure has an odd way of showing it," Drix remarked.

"It's called flirting. They saw you always hurt the one you love," Ziac grinned as he stopped in front of two doors. "There are two rooms and two beds in each. Drix, you take your usually room three doors down from the main hall. As for the rest of you, one of the girls is going to have to room with the guy unless Twilmer doesn't need her own bed seeing as how she's a Pichu."

"Just because I'm a Pichu doesn't mean I don't want my own bed," she growled.

"I thought that would be the case. Alright then I leave you four to fight over who gets what. I'm off to go do some paper work. It was nice meeting all of you." Ziac waved and the party waved back. One couldn't help but to like Ziac.

"I call Emily23," Aura said before anyone could speak, enjoying the look playing on Twilmer's face.

"Yay, I get to room with Aura," EMily23 bounced up and down in excitement; Bunneary mimicking her and Max yawning. On second thought, maybe this wasn't such a good idea.

"I guess this means that you and I are rooming together," Helium blushed. Twilmer was blushing too as she walked over to the bed. Victoria snickered, quite enjoying her partner's embarrassment. They walked into their room as Emily23 walked into hers. Aura turned and watched Drix's retreating form. Something was up and something had to be said. She started after him, telling Sparia to wait for her back at the room. "Where's she going?" Emily23 asked Sparia. The penguin Pokémon shrugged as she watched her partner with a curious look upon her face.

ooo

"This is much better," Twilmer breathed as she shut the door and turned back into a human. She had made sure to check the coding in case someone had placed a bug or video recorder in the room. She knew it was risky, but she really couldn't stand being a Pichu for a moment longer. Helium blushed as her beautiful form appeared where the tiny Pichu had been moments before. Twilmer kicked off her white boots and took off her royal white cape, draping it over a chair in the room. She then flopped onto the bed with a satisfied sigh.

Helium smiled and took off his pink robe. Twilmer watched in mild interest as she had never seen the herbalist without it before. He draped it on the chair behind him and turned to get into his own bed. Twilmer blushed slightly as a slightly muscled with a hint of pudge bodied man sat on his bad. She never realized that the girly herbalist could be built, even if slightly. He wasn't wearing a shirt and his pants were baggy and a deep brown color. "Why aren't you wearing a shirt?" Twilmer asked dumbly.

"Oh, well, my robe is so soft and at the time I made my character, I wasn't sure what to wear underneath, so I didn't choose anything. I guess I kind of forgot since my robe is so comfortable." Helium looked slightly embarrassed as he fluffed his pillows and laid back on them.

"You don't even have any armor on? That's not very smart. What if a warrior or something comes after you?" Twilmer asked, sitting up and stretching, then switching to a more comfortable position.

"Well, I never thought about that," Helium scratched his head in embarrassment. "Then again, who knew I'd end up on this crazy life-threatening adventure."

"Sorry about that," Twilmer looked away.

"Hey, you don't have to apologize about anything. I'm just glad that I met you and find this excitement. Just think; without you, I'd probably still have been in the low level areas and might not have even gotten into this game as much as I have. Anyways, what about you? You just wear a purple leotard. Don't you need armor?"

"Nope, I'm that good," Twilmer grinned. "Actually, this is for mobility. Without baggy clothing on, I can get about faster which is essential for a grace master. The cape I wear raises my defense a lot. Much as it may seem to slow me down, it's worth it. I can use it to block attacks and such. Not that I've been doing much fighting since I became an admin," Twilmer admitted. Victoria had made herself comfortable at the edge of the bed. Helium's Vileplume had settled on the carpet in the middle of the room, snoozing with small snores.

"But it was worth it, right?"

"Of course. I had always wanted to be an admin and when my dream came true..." Twilmer stopped, not liking her choice of words. "Anyways, yeah it was worth it, even if certain rivals of mine flew past me level wise," she grumped.

"Why have you never logged out in so long?" Helium asked cautiously. Twilmer remained silent, fiddling with her long, white ponytail.

"Why would I need to? Everything I want is right here. I have a paying job and a butler to bring me food. Speaking of which, more tea Geoffrey!" Twilmer shouted away from her headset. "What's there out there for me that I can't get in here?" Helium could tell that he wasn't going to get more of an answer at the moment. "Did you read the book?" Twilmer asked suddenly.

"The Faulkner book you told me to read? I sure did," Helium smiled.

"What did you think?" Twilmer asked, sitting up. Helium smiled and the two began to discuss the books they had read.

ooo

"Where are you going?" Aura jumped when she heard a voice suddenly behind her, pulling out both of her katanas and whirling around. She saw Luna smirking at her. She didn't lower her blades.

"Where I am going is none of your concern." Aura spat.

"That may be true, but I can hazard a guess. You're going to go see Drix, am I right?" Luna asked with a smirk. She took Aura's determined silence as a yes. "Funny how he didn't tell you of all people that he was a double crossing spy, but that's not for me to say," Luna laughed as she walked off down the hall leaving behind a flustered Aura. Aura put her blades away--though not locking them into their hilts--and counted three doors down from the main hall. She pounded on the door and waited for an answer.

Drix jumped and opened the door to find a very angry aura glaring at him. "What'd I do this time?" he asked. Aura didn't say anything as she walked into the room and slammed the door behind her. Drix's room was a bit larger than the two the rest of the party had been given. It was lined with shelves of odds and ends and a fireplace against the wall.

"Why didn't you tell me you were an Underground member? Why didn't you say you were a spy? What was with that meeting? What did Serena want?" Aura was so furious she was spouting out questions without giving Drix a moment to answer.

"Calm down," Drix said getting angry as Aura glared at him.

"You're a damn spy! We trusted you; I trusted you. You're working for a place that probably wants to see my head on a platter for the amount of bounties I've gotten against them." Aura was seething, balling her hands into fists.

"I think Luna's the only one here who'd like to see your head on a platter and she's weird so ignore her. I didn't lie to you because I never even brought up the fact that I was in the Underground. I more omitted certain truths." Drix gave her a smug look. Aura growled and slapped him as hard as she could and then stormed out of the room. She wasn't even sure why she was so angry. Drix merely stood in his room rubbing his cheek and wondering what had happened. "I will never understand women," he spat.

Aura tiptoed into her room since Emily23 was already asleep, or so she thought. "Hi Aura!" she exclaimed, frightening the poor swordswoman.

"I didn't know you were awake," she said in a tired voice. She settled into her bed without bothering to take off any clothing to make herself more comfortable. Sparia and Bunneary were already asleep.

"What's wrong?" Emily23 asked looking over at Aura in concern.

"I'm not even sure myself," Aura admitted with a sigh. Emily23 walked over to Aura and gave the swordswoman a hug. She accepted the hug, awkwardly patting her on the back. Emily23 settled on Aura's bed to listen to her problems, but ended up falling asleep. "Figures," Aura muttered with a grin. She picked up the girl gently and was surprised at how light she was. Since the game simulated one's real weight, there was no way she could weigh this much and be healthy. Aura laid Emily23 down on her bed and watched the girl for a bit before falling into a fitful sleep.

ooo

End Part 31

Next time will see us some action, promise.


	32. A Surprise Attack for Whom?

Pokémon World Online

Part 32: A surprise attack for whom?

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. Part 32 of a crazy little idea I had at the beginning of the year. Who knew this idea would still be going strong nearly a year later? This part is dedicated to Kuraido for getting me into Moyashimon (an excellent anime about a boy who can see Microbes (aka Tales of Agriculture))

ooo

"Wake up!" Luna shouted as she pounded on the doors of Helium and Twilmer's and Aura and Emily23's rooms. Twilmer sat up groggily muttering unintelligibly, and then she remembered that she was not a Pichu.

"Oh shit!" she shouted as she hurried and pulled her cape and boots on and then turned her medallion to become a Pichu once more.

"Any problems?" Luna asked as she opened the door; eyeing Twilmer suspiciously.

"Nope! None at all!" she replied quickly.

"Funny how a little Pichu can mess up a bed so much--or did your boyfriend join you?" Luna glared at the two with a smirk on her face.

"I bet you'd like for Drix to join you," Aura's voice was heard. Luna jumped and turned to see Aura strutting towards her, one of her katanas resting on her shoulder.

"Who asked you?" Luna spat, hand moving towards her blow dart gun. Aura withdrew her other katana and had it hovering near Luna's hand before it could move an inch closer to her weapon. Luna hissed and threw a powder at Aura with her other hand. Aura couldn't move and Luna jumped back, grabbing her blow dart gun and shooting three darts towards Aura. Victoria leaped forward and deflected them with her claws. Sparia looked over approvingly at the clawed Pokémon with a smile playing on her beak.

"A stunning powder," Helium commented as he rummaged through his inventory and pulled out a powder of his own. He threw it on Aura and she regained feeling in her body.

"You bitch!" she shouted, rushing forward. Luna blew a dart which sank into Aura's arm. She pulled it out before it could take effect and lunged forward.

"STOP!" Aura stopped--as did Luna--and turned to see Serena walking forward with a dangerous look on her face. "I come to gather Twilmer's party in order to begin this attack on PWO Corp which will take nearly all of our resources and may result in some casualties and I find you, Luna, a member of my trusted court, picking a fight with a bounty hunter just because of your uncontrolled feelings. This will NOT be accepted. I was planning on having all of the top underground members coming along, but you, Luna, will stay behind. Aura, I suggest you learn how to keep your temper in check as well. Now all of you, except Luna, come to the meeting room." Serena turned and left. Luna looked at everyone and ran down the hallway with a strangled cry.

"I almost feel bad for her," Helium said quietly.

"Almost." Twilmer crossed her arms.

"We need to get to the meeting room." Aura turned and walked away at a fast pace; everyone else struggling to keep up with her.

ooo

"Is everyone ready to move out?" Serena asked after a short speech. Cheers were heard all around from the gathered members. Twilmer, Aura, Drix, Helium, Emily23, Max, Victoria, Sparia, Bunneary, and Vileplume were gathered near the back. None of them said anything as they stood together. This was possibly the last time they would be together like this as everything was about to change.

"I never thought I'd be in a situation like this," Twilmer sighed.

"I don't think any of us could have foreseen this," Aura agreed with a curt nod.

"We move now!" Serena lifted her hand and one of the walls sank into the ground revealing a passage way. "I had Xate program this for us last night so we could get as close to PWO Corp as possible before we began our assault." Serena walked briskly forward through the tunnel, everyone else following behind. Everything was about to change.

ooo

"What a beautiful day," Guy commented as he walked through the forests of Bellum with his partner Caesar, a Butterfree, fluttering lazily beside him. He took his time as he moved for he had no reason to rush. The breeze ruffled his short dirty blonde hair and his blue robe billowed behind him. He stooped down when he saw a small pink flower on the side of the path he was walking along. "See this, Caesar?" Guy asked as he kneeled down and cupped his hands around the small flower. Caesar fluttered closely and purred a response. "This is fox lily. I haven't seen these in a few years; not since we ran into that odd woman who seemed to not know how to clothe herself. These are truly a rare item." Caesar reached forward and plucked the small flower, coating it in a thin layer of blue powder.

Guy grabbed the flower and held it in his hands. A blue glow enveloped the flower as it floated in front of him and began to wither away. Guy grabbed an empty pouch and held it under the flower as it withered and crumbled into a fine powder, catching it within the pouch. He tied it off and attached it to his belt. "A powder such as this is extremely potent. I fear for whatever I have to use it on." Caesar nodded and the two continued along their way. "I wonder whatever did happen to that girl..." he trailed off as a sudden chill had him pulling his robe closer to himself."Seems the wind is unusually chilly here today my friend. Why don't we go somewhere warmer?" Caesar agreed and the two picked up their pace.

ooo

"We're here," Serena breathed as they came to a small flight of stairs leading to a covered opening in the ceiling of the passageway. She pushed a button and the cover silently slid away. She made to climb out when a hand from above met hers.

"Need a hand?" a gruff voice asked as he grabbed her wrist so hard she yelped in pain.

"I know that voice! Brandon," Twilmer hissed, her heart jumping to her throat.

"The top ten," Drix pulled out his sword clumsily. The tunnel buzzed with panic as the gamers hadn't anticipated this. "Some bastard must have ratted us out," Drix scowled.

"We can't stay in here. Sparia, join me for a Point Smash attack!" Aura and Sparia unleashed their joint attack on the low passageway ceiling and created a hole. Bright sunlight streamed in causing her to shield her eyes. "Here we are," Aura pulled out a rope from her inventory. "Everyone grab on!" she called to the party. Everyone grabbed the silver rope. Aura threw the end through the hole and the group teleported to the ground above. Aura sighed as she watched the rope disappear. She still didn't enjoy using her hard earned rare items. Brandon looked up in surprise as did his partner, a Gallade. Sparia shot a hydro pump at the Gallade and Aura threw her Katana, striking Brandon. She ran forward and caught it before it hit the ground. The small distraction was all that the underground needed as the top members rushed out and then the rest of the troops.

They were met with a large group of suits. "Shit," Serena cussed.

"We're going to have to cut our way through them to make it to the building," Aura shouted as she struck the nearest suit who fell limply to the ground. Emily lunged at several with her pole and she had Bunneary ice beam them as well. Max added his mega punch and water gun attacks to the mix. Helium and Vileplume kept up a steady flow of powders. Drix whistled and Salamance flew down to met him; unleashing her flamethrower on the suits. Aura and Drix sliced their way forward as Sparia and Victoria cut through the group with steel wings and sharp claws respectively. Twilmer shocked anyone who came near her, sticking close to Victoria and Helium. The group slowly made their way through the sea of suits.

Brandon had disappeared and had more than likely went back to the building. "Damn it, we're giving them time to regroup and charge at us when we reach the building."Serena snarled. She pulled out a warp stone and tossed it to Shi and Sho. "You two scout ahead and only take on what you can handle. Return immediately if things get too much for you to handle. We don't need to lose anyone. The twins nodded and they and their Kirlia teleported away. "Xate, Ziac, Maple, Midget, take out the suits and make a pathway for Twilmer and her party to get into the building." They nodded and cleared the suits away.

"Thanks," Twilmer called out as the party ran forward. She had leaped onto Helium's shoulder since she still had not gotten the hang of moving fast as a Pichu. The stream of suits had let up so Serena and her top members followed Twilmer and her party as well as a few of the other members. The rest stayed behind to continue taking out the suits.

"Midget, stay behind and control these troops," Serena ordered. Midget nodded and he and his Machoke continued to karate chop the suits. The group entered PWO Corp and ran down the long entrance hallway with no problem. They had reached the elevator when they were confronted by four of the top ten, including Brandon.

"Going somewhere?" Brandon sneered as he spat on the floor near Serena. She growled and pulled out her staff. "I wouldn't do that if I were you. You my dear are outnumbered and committing serious crimes that can have your character deleted from this game. I would stop if I were you. Drix, it surprises me to see you here with this group."

"It surprises me to see you here with that group. PWO Corp isn't what it used to be, or maybe it always has been this way and I've just been blind to it." Drix shook his head.

"Cut the small talk. We have a mission to accomplish." Serena held her staff forward and charged. Xate flew forward quicker than the eye could catch and stood in front of Brandon. "Xate!" Serena stopped, looking surprised, confused, and hurt. Xate didn't say a word as he pulled a hidden dagger form his pocket and before anyone could react, he lashed out and struck Serena in the throat. She fell backwards, blood gushing from her wound.

ooo

End Part 32

Short part is short, but I wanted to get something up to inspire me to keep going onward ;


	33. The World Came Crashing Down

Pokémon World Online

Part 33: The World Came Crashing Down

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. Bah, I feel nostalgic today for some reason. I think once I am pretty much done with this fic, I may go back and revise some of the parts I'm not so proud of, namely the beginning. Then again, I want to move forward, so I doubt I will XD either way, thank you guys for supporting me throughout this fic even during its few month long hiatus which was namely due to my getting obsessed with wifi and shiny Pokémon XD speaking of which, I still owe Moya that Jirachi for drawing Twilmer for me This part will be dedicated to the shiny Shedinja I gave to Moya. I hope he's doing well . (is a dork for checking up on bits of data)

Also, Moya, I used a good deal of the battle scenes you described in this because you're so great at them. You made my job of writing this part a lot easier :D tackles

ooo

"Serena!" Ziac ran forward and kneeled beside his fallen leader. "Drix, the timer that shows when she will be revived isn't showing up." Ziac looked up at Drix, tears shining in his eyes.

"It won't show up," Twilmer looked away; ears drooping. Helium hadn't had a revive meter either when he had died, but Arceus had brought him back. Twilmer hadn't had a revive meter either when she had died and had been brought back by Arceus as well.

"We should at least be able to hear her through the microphone. Serena! Can you hear me? Serena!" Ziac shouted. Maple cleared his throat and clasped his team mate's shoulder. Ziac moved his shoulder away and shook slightly. "You," Ziac glared up at Xate.

"Me," Xate spoke, which surprised everyone. Xate never spoke. "Always beware the silent ones." Xate threw off his Lucario mask to reveal a face so glitched one could not make out what it was.

"I thought you looked familiar! This is the infamous Glitched Striker. He's got more player kills on his head than any other and has hacked so much into the system that his face has become permanently glitched so he wore a mask. I just never knew what mask you decided to wear and I never dreamed to find you with the underground." Aura growled.

"Wait, if he's got such a huge bounty on his head, then why aren't the top ten attacking him?" Twilmer asked.

"You don't get it, do you?" Xate shook his head in disappointment. "You still can't comprehend that your precious PWO corp. could be scheming and plotting against you."

"We hired Xate a long time ago to be a silent observer of the Underground. He had an interesting bit of information last night concerning a certain attack on PWO Corp." Brandon pointed and his Gallade rushed forward, swiping at Twilmer. She jumped back and Victoria countered with an ice punch.

"Damn you!" Ziac shouted, rushing forward to take on Xate. They matched blow for blow as Xate had pulled out a long sword of his own from his inventory.

Suits came rushing at them from all sides. "Oh this just keeps getting better and better," Aura hissed. She really couldn't feel sad for Serena's death as she barely knew the woman, but she did feel a twang of pity for the underground members who had been close to her. Drix was unusually silent. "Let's make a little wager to see who can take out the most suits to make this interesting," Aura smirked.

"Are you crazy?" Drix raised an eyebrow.

"One." Aura slashed and took out the nearest suit. "Two." Another Down. "Three."

"Okay fine, you're on," Drix smirked slicing forward. The rest of the team worked hard to get rid of the suits as Xate and Ziac exchanged blows. The top ten had mysteriously vanished again. Shi and Sho hadn't come back yet either.

She saw Sparia slashing her own enemy with steel wing and then sending another ice beam towards the next one. She felt a pleasant rush of pride; Sparia was trained very well and Aura no longer needed to give her commands - the Empoleon knew perfectly what move to use.

The swordswoman turned around yet again, each of her blades stabbing different enemy. She glanced towards Drix, who simply raised his thumb and smirked back at her. "Got 12!"

"Damn." She muttered to herself, not pleased with the turn of events. A woman with short red hair walked into the room from one of the hallways leading towards the elevators. An Aggron was by her side and it growled in greeting.

"SilentSusan," Twilmer looked up. "She's the most recent to join the top ten; right behind Drix. She and her Aggron won't be easy to take down. She's a defender, but that doesn't mean she can't attack."

"Thanks for the intro, Twilmer. I always did like you. You were the most gullible of the admin's," SilentSusan smirked as Twilmer humphed. Aggron rushed forward and jumped up. He landed in a strong earthquake attack. Victoria grabbed Twilmer and jumped up, latching onto a pillar with her strong claws. The rest bore the earthquake as best as they could.

"Salamance, take care of that Aggron," Drix commanded. Salamance roared and let forth a flamethrower. Aggron jumped back and tunneled into the tile. "Damn it," Drix looked around for where the Aggron could have gone.

Aura rushed forward with her twin katanas lashing out at SilentSusan. She did a back flip and shook the padding she had tied to her legs and arms. Knives that had been folded popped out making her arms and legs dangerous weapons. "I'm a master at Karate, so I wouldn't come any closer if I were you," she sneered, flipping her red hair over her shoulder arrogantly.

As the suits died down, a new flood of different suits emerged. They bore blue hair and appeared to be more heavily armed than the generic suits of PWO Corp. "Oh great, it looks like the freaks of Game freak have arrived," Twilmer grumped.

"Game Freak?" Emily23 questioned as she dodged a blow.

"They are the distributers of this game, after all, so they have a hub right next to PWO Corp." Twilmer dodged a bullet.

"I don't know why you continue to play as the Pichu. We know that you have regained your true form." Twilmer looked up as another top ten member came from down the hallway.

"Valentino," Drix glared. The man grinned at him; his trusty Tyranitar by his side. Valentino was one of the few level 100 top ten members and was a force to be reckoned with.

"How do you know that?" Twilmer asked.

"You just told me," Valentino sneered, Tyranitar cracking up behind him.

"Damn it, I can't believe I fell for it," Twilmer smacked her forehead.

"You always used to fall for it, so I don't know why you expected it to be any different," he smirked. Victoria gave him a rude expression with her middle claw.

"Oh well, works better for me," Twilmer shrugged, touching the pendant around her neck and regaining her Grace master form. She jumped back to avoid a sword blow form Valentino. Drix countered it and the two began to fight. Emily23 and Max were distracting SilentSusan. Helium was using his powders on the suits while Ziac and Xate exchanged blows. Maple and the rest of the Underground members were taking care of the horde of Game Freak suits.

"Give in," Xate chided to Ziac as their swords sparked with the force of their blows.

"How could you?" Was all Ziac could say. He fought back tears as he fought, though this sadness only served to strengthen his attacks.

"Aura," Twilmer whispered as she backed near the woman.

"What?" Aura asked as she PKed another player. "Sixteen," she said to herself.

"I'm going to head upstairs alone and try and find Mr. Ta...I mean Satoshi and try and take him down to see if maybe that'll let some of the fire out." Twilmer stabbed at one of the blue haired man with her staff as he got near to her, Victoria taking the liberty to finish him off with a crush claw.

"Are you crazy? There's no way you can take him down yourself! Plus what if some of the seven are with him? I mean we've only seen top ten so far, but the seven--or rather six now--will be even more dangerous." Aura took down another man who had rushed forward. "Seventeen."

"I am crazy, thanks for noticing. Listen, I'm the reason all of you are even in this mess. It's my job to try and make the load on you guys lighter." With that, Twilmer had rushed away with the grace and agility she was infamous for.

"Dumb ass," Aura muttered as she watched Twilmer leave, two Game Freak goons following her, "with all these suits and shit running around, she's going to get herself killed." Aura took her Katanas and stabbed them behind her, PKing a goon. "Eighteen."

ooo

"Wait, where are you going?" Emily23 shouted after the retreating form of Twilmer. She disappeared into the elevator and the doors soon closed behind her. She made to follow Twilmer when a hyper beam from either Tyranitar or Salamance--she couldn't even tell anymore--exploded a pillar beside her. She held up a hand to shield her eyes form the debris and held Bunneary protectively against her. Salamance shot out a flamethrower that missed them by a hair. "It's too dangerous," she sighed.

"Oh shit," Drix cursed. Emily23 turned to see yet another top ten member enter the room with an Arcanine. The Arcanine let out a flurry of Fire blasts which shock the building ominously.

"At this rate the building is going to collapse," she said worriedly. She set Bunneary down and gathered the bunny and Max to her. "Okay guys, we need to take down one of these Pokémon in order to even up the playing field and to stop this building form coming down. Salamance has Tyranitar and we wouldn't be that strong against Aggron, but I think we could get that Arcanine and his oddly dressed trainer." Bunneary nodded and Max yawned. "I hope we can do this," she sighed to herself.

ooo

"Twenty" Aura gasped, yanking her swords back from the neck of the goon she had just taken care of and whose body soon flashed and disappeared. At the same time she dodged the cutlass that was aimed at her back.

"Zahia, you cheating bitch." The swordswoman repelled another attack and then tried to reach her opponent's neck with her other katana, missing it only by hair's difference. "You haven't changed at all." The Arcanine's trainer landed in front of her, twirling her weapons in her hands. She remembered the woman well from back when she had been a member of the top ten.

"Wish I could say the same about you." The brown-haired woman lunged forward in another attack, which Aura had parried with surprising ease. She saw Sparia was busy with SilentSusan's Aggron. Somehow she knew her Empoleon would emerge from the fight victorious. She just had to...

Aura attacked again, from the crouched stance, cutting from low angle. Tips of her swords reached her opponent's stomach; leaving two, thin bloody trails on the exposed skin. Zahia hissed, backing away a step or two.

"Still holding to that ridiculous two-sword style, I see. I thought you would be smarter by now."

"Che." Aura used the brief pause in battle to wipe the sweat from back of her neck and adjust the goggles on her head, not taking her eyes from her opponent for even for a second. "And you still resolve to cheating when you can't win in fair fight."

"That may be so." Zahia used her free hand to take off her black hooded cape and twirled it around slightly, until it bound her wrist few times. Then she attacked again, but her moves were different now, more light and cautious, as she the two women circled each other. Aura knew that soon Zahia would use some dirty trick; she knew the other woman too well.

The brown-haired girl jumped towards her, flinging her cape wildly to reduce Aura's sight, successfully. She pared the incoming blow with pure instinct, trying to predict from where the blade would fall on her. She blocked it, but then another random move of the cape covered the cutlass's blade and before she knew it, there was thin trail of blood streaking down her wounded arm. It was barely a scratch, but could be something way more serious if she had not moved away in last possible moment.

"You dirty little..." Aura hissed, licking of the trailing blood, hoping to stop the wound from bleeding.

The cape was flung at her again, once more blocking her from seeing the opponent, but this time she swirled around it, parrying the next blow... that didn't come. Confused, she blocked behind her back, acting out of instinct again and when the cape fell a split second later, Zahia wasn't there.

A stinging pain pierced her side when the cutlass dug through the skin and muscles. Aura yelped and jumped back more out of surprise than pain, eyes still fixed on Zahia, her hands touching the wound and trying to judge how serious it was. Well, that one wasn't just a scratch.

Tired and angry at the dirty fight, Aura was the one to attack this time. Yet again, the thrown cape almost blinded her but this time, she was ready. In last possible second she crouched, low on the ground, and thrust both of her blades upwards.

There was a moment of resistance, and then both katanas sank into flesh, virtual blood falling on Aura's face as she glanced upwards. Zahia wore an expression that could be described as shocked and furious at the same time. Cutlass fell from her hands, as she hissed something Aura could not understand and then her body disappeared, her weight lifted from the swords that Aura still held up.

"Got twenty two" Drix gasped, appearing by her side as he PK'ed another goon. "Twenty three now. What the fuck happened to you?"

"Shut up." Aura grimaced at her wounded side and blood-soiled clothes. "Top ten member counts as ten normal players, so I have thirty by now." She ignored Drix's protest as she rummaged touch her inventory, looking for potions. She found none.

"Fantastic." She gasped, hand clutching at the wound. "Why the fuck do I have to get injured in every single fight?" Aura growled, slashing another enemy. She would have to somehow hold on till they were safe again.

"That makes thirty one."

ooo

Alice, yet another member of the top ten, waited by the elevator doors, having pressed the button. She could hear the humming as it approached, and licked her lips in anticipation of the battle. She turned and looked at the motley crew of goons she'd been lumped with. Well, if things got really out of hand, she could call for back-up, but as it was, the only magician in the Top Ten really wanted to defeat the admin by herself.

"She's mine! The admin's mine!" she cackled at her goons. "I'll kill her... I'll kill her!" There was a manic, slightly insane glint in her eyes. Her goons, brave and high level troops as they were, tried to edge away from her. Known for her terrible ferocity in battle, and her disregard for life, be it friend or foe, she was widely feared. In fact, the only command that she had been given was that she refrain from destroying the entire building, so fearsome were her attacking skills.

Her partner, a frightening looking Alakazam gave a macabre laugh. She turned her head suddenly, as Dil, the number one of the top ten, detached himself from the shadows. "How long have you been there!" she snapped, irritated by his sudden appearance.

"Long enough" he said. "Twilmer's on her way, you know. Alone. The others are being... held up by Val"

"Hah, he might be a complete freaking' psycho" she said, not favoring any of the top ten aside from herself and Dil, while Dil politely didn't point out the hypocrisy, "But he's competent, I'll give him that!"

"Yeah, well, I'm not here to kill Twilmer. She's all yours" Dil said, stepping backwards from the malevolence of her glare.

"I know... If you steal my kill, I'll destroy you so utterly your ancestors will stop existing! He knew the others wouldn't stop her. I'm the only one he really trusts! I want full credit for this kill, and all that's coming to me"

She paused as the elevator stopped. Dill glanced at the doors, and said, "Oh, I've no doubt you'll get that. No doubt at all"

The doors opened, and Twilmer stood readied in a fighting crouch. Alice grinned sadistically as she held up her hand, Alakazam copying her and doing the same, which reminded Twilmer of Emily23. A ball of pure psychic energy formed in each of their hands As they threw their combined bombs forward, Twilmer used her charm to turn into a Pichu and dodged the attack, which hit the elevator with the force of a bomb. The entire building shook with the force. Twilmer and Weavile quickly used their agility to cross the room under the guise of the smoke form the attack and make their way to the second set of elevators. They entered one and quickly shut the doors behind them, shooting upwards.

"Bitch, you weren't supposed to nearly destroy the building," Dil growled.

"It doesn't matter, I'll get her," Alice began to run towards the elevator when Dil's Steelix cut her off. Alice looked over at him confused. Dil merely grabbed a wide, blunt sword from his inventory and hit Alice as hard as he could with it. Alice fell onto the floor horribly disfigured and never to move again.

"We've gone too far to have you mess things up. You always act too rashly. You!" He pointed his sword at the Alakazam who stopped moving and looked over at Dil cautiously. "Teleport me to where Twilmer will be when her elevator stops or you will end up worse than your partner here." The Alakazam complied bitterly.

ooo

Something was going not as planned; At first there were only sounds of battle raging around them, then distant roar of explosion and after few mere moments the building shook greatly. Pieces of debris and rock ceiling crumbled around them as the tremors continued, successfully burying some of their enemies. Unfortunately, they were in the same danger.

Aura leapt from the falling rock, looking around until she spotted Sparia in fair distance, but the Empoleon was fine, only few scratches and bruises from fighting the Aggron. She noticed Emily23 and her Bunneary as well as Max fighting off one of the opponents and then escaping the incoming rocks. Twilmer was gone upstairs, Helium was safe--she noticed his movement in the corner of her eye. It seemed like all of them were alright. Except...

Where the hell was Drix?

She took a quick glance at the mini map of their location, searching for the dot that marked Drix's location. It was flashing just by her right side, but when she looked in that direction, she could see only huge pile of rocks and debris. "Oh you've got to be fucking kidding me." She used Point Smash attack to blast away the heaviest rocks, after that she sheathed her swords since most of their enemies had been buried under the debris. She pushed the rocks aside until she saw the form of her fellow swordsman. Coughing in the falling dust, Drix finally crawled from the heap of rocks, wiping his forehead from the thin layer of swat.

"That fucking took me by surprise. Is everyone all right?" He asked, looking worse for the wear.

"Looks like it." Aura still crouched by the kneeling swordsman. "You?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I got 47 in the end, so who won?"

Aura opened her mouth to reply, and then closed it after a second. Drix sported quite nasty cut on his right leg that could cause him to limp if untreated and small trail of blood trickled from his cut temple. She helped him onto his feet, despite the man's protest.

She smirked. "You know what, I didn't count anymore."

ooo

End Part 33

What will happen next :o and did you guys like the action we finally got to see :3


	34. Overcoming a Desperate Situation

Pokémon World Online

Part 34: Overcoming a Desperate Situation

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. This part continues the action that happened last time. This part is dedicated to all the lovely people who have commissioned me at Deviant art and TPTF. You guys are seriously the best 3 you make me feel like I can actually sew :P this part is also dedicated to my upcoming exams and portfolios which are due...like...in a day or two XD (probably will already be done by the time this is posted :P) so thanks you guys. Yeah these disclaimers are basically my ranting place because apparently my LJ isn't enough XD okay, enjoy the fic. This part is influenced by Swedish pop music XD

ooo

"Oh shit!" Emily23 cussed, surprising Drix and Aura. She ran over to the Arcanine, who had also been buried under the rubble. She pulled away the rubble, Bunneary helping. Max tried to use his water gun to blow the rocks away, but she stopped him knowing that the water could hurt Arcanine.

"Leave it be. It's just a top ten Pokémon." Drix looked over at her.

"No! As a tamer, I have the duty of helping all Pokémon. It's not this Arcanine's fault that he's helping evil. Besides, have you forgotten that Pokémon have become as real as you or me. Remember the Ho-oh?" Drix looked at her and nodded. It was better to let her do as she pleased then to try and talk her out of it, The Arcanine's partner had probably perished in the falling of the rubble and usually Pokémon partners disappeared when the human partners did for the resurrection count down countdown to begin; however, as Pokémon were becoming real, she didn't foresee that happening.

The Arcanine burst from the rubble when Emily23 and the two Pokémon had cleared enough away. It glared at her and limped forward pitifully. It snarled and used a weak Ember attack. Max used a Bubble beam to deflect the attack. "Arcanine, please stop," Emily23 pleaded. Arcanine snarled and continued to limp forward. Emily dropped her pole and ran towards it. It bared its teeth at her and Bunneary gasped, trying to stop her. Emily23 hugged its neck. The Arcanine reared back, but she hung on tightly. Arcanine was severely injured and very tired. Finally it calmed down enough and settled down. Emily23 pulled out some potions from her bag and used them to heal his wounds. "Arr," the Arcanine stood.

"There you go," she smiled.

"You idiot! It's going to attack us now at full power!" Drix frowned, readying his sword.

"Have some faith," Emily23 held up a hand. The Arcanine sniffed the air and walked over to her. Aura tensed, drawing her Katanas. Emily23 once again held up her hand. The Arcanine lowered its head and licked her face. Aura sighed and sheathed her katanas. Drix slapped his forehead.

"So much for the fearsome Pokémon of the top ten," he rolled his eyes.

ooo

"She's here, isn't she?" Dream smiled, voice sweet as honey flowing from her lips. Beside her, Nightmare floated around Dream's head in lazy yet elegant circles. "She doesn't know when to give up."

Dream walked down the long, marble hallway looking around at the pictures around her of areas in the game and gamers. Many of the gamers on the walls had accomplished a task of great honor. Dream stopped as one of the photos caught her interest. It was a young man and his Butterfree looking at the camera. Neither were smiling--though Butterfree really can't smile anyways--and the male was holding a small, brown, plain bag in his hand. "So this is what has become of him," Dream recognized his as the man who had told her that she could make dreams come true.

She felt something, a flash of a memory, race through her mind. She grabbed her forehead for a second and waited for the memory to leave. These memories no longer met anything to her. She had long ago abandoned this ambition for a greater one; revenge.

ooo

The elevator Twilmer was on stopped suddenly. She walked out to find herself a floor lower than she had wanted. Then again, with the condition the building was in from that blast, it surprised her that the elevator had made it this far. All she needed to do was find the stairs and she could climb to the top level to meet Satoshi Tajiri face to face. "I doubt the seven would still be here if I know Mr. Taj--I mean Satoshi, except for Mr. Sug--I mean Ken because an artist is indispensible." Twilmer mentally kicked herself for the continued use of respect for the manipulative people who tried to destroy her.

"Where do you think you're going?" a cool voice asked. Twilmer turned to see a man six years older than her standing beside his Steelix.

"Dil!" Twilmer squeaked as she saw one of only four level 100 members in existence. Dill had been the first member of the top ten and the first gamer to ever reach level 100. He was the most skilled gamer in the entire game. He moved to stand in front of the staircase. His Steelix slithered so that it blocked Twilmer from any possible chance of escape.

"Steelix, take care of the exits, would you?" Dill asked. Steelix happily created a rockslide which blocked the elevators and all doors leading into the room. "There's no escape."

"Are you insane?" Twilmer raised her eyebrow, fear building in the pit of her stomach. "You're going to end up being killed as well if you keep this kind of recklessness up."

"Look who's talking," Dill sneered, pacing back and forth making Twilmer feel more and more like a trapped mouse. "You would think that, but we top ten aren't as loyal to PWO Corp as one might think. I have so many hacks on my character that I can survive anything." he grinned cockily.

Twilmer knew there was no way out, but she wasn't about to die without a fight. She lunged forward towards Dill with all the skills she could muster, hoping she might be able to do some damage to the level 100.

ooo

Another tremor shook the building. The shaking was getting annoying and more rubble fell upon the gathered party members. Helium held on to his Vileplume until the tremors had stopped. When they did, he sighed and took a step back, only to find a sword at his throat. "Wha-" the boy didn't dare move to see who held him captive.

"Xate!" Drix hissed. "Leave the boy alone!" Drix was surprised to see Xate had even survived the rubble fall. He grabbed a potion and used it to heal his leg. He then drew his sword, only to find Xate pushing the blade closer to Helium's throat.

"Let him go!" Ziac shouted, not bothering to brush the rubble off of himself.

"I'll let the boy free if someone brings me the head of Twilmer or Satoshi." Helium gasped slightly at this as the blade was too close to his neck to allow him to do much of anything.

"Twilmer I can understand, but why Satoshi?" Drix asked.

"Because with the death of Satoshi, this corporation will need someone to run it." Xate looked at them each in turn--or rather they assumed he looked at them. With his face as glitched as it was, it was hard to tell.

"And naturally that ruler would be you," Aura shook her head. She saw Ziac sneaking forward out of the corner of her eye. Xate hadn't noticed yet and she planned to keep it that way. "Why would you even be considered for the leadership position when Satoshi has a whole top ten and seven to take over for him?" Aura asked, raising her voice to cover any missed noise Ziac might make.

"You killed quite a few of the top ten right here, and you took care of one of the top seven already my dear," Xate rolled his shoulders causing Helium to intake a breath as the sword was dangerously close to ending his life. "Besides, everyone can be-" Whatever else Xate was about to say would never be heard as his head fell to the ground. The sword fell from his hand and the body toppled over backwards. Helium shouted a little as he scrambled away from the spot and ran beside Aura. Ziac stood behind where Xate had been a few moments before holding his bloody sword beside him. He dropped it and fell to his knees, sobbing.

"Ziac, man," Drix ran beside his friend and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Oh man, Ziac." The most innocent and lighthearted of the Underground's top members had had to be the one to take down the traitor. Never again would Ziac be able to laugh and joke around the same way as he had.

"Serena!" Drix jumped slightly as Sho appeared on top of the rubble using the warp stone. "Serena! The res meter won't show up! There were too many of them and one of the top ten got to Shi. Why won't the res meter show up? Serena!" Sho shouted, tears streaming from her eyes. Neither of their Kirlias was with Sho.

"Serena's gone. The game has become too real and the res meters are a thing of the past. Shi is-" Drix shook his head, unable to bring himself to say it.

"What nonsense are," Sho stopped, waiting for Shi to finish her sentence, and then realization struck her. "She's not coming back..." Sho hugged her fallen twin and sobbed. "Serena's gone too." It was all too much to bear.

Another tremor shook the building. "What the hell is going on up there?" Aura wondered aloud. "Oh shit, Twilmer's up there!" Aura turned to Drix.

"WHAT? When did she leave?" Drix asked, fuming.

"She wanted to try and find Satoshi on her own while we were busy down here," Aura scowled, standing her ground.

"And you let her go?" Drix glared at her.

"This arguing isn't going to get us to Twilmer any faster." Helium looked from one to the other. They were both surprised that the pink-robed herbalist had spoken up to them.

"Damn it, he's right! Besides, the girl can't take care of herself without us." The party ran forward towards the elevator. They didn't stop to make sure Emily23 was following and didn't hear her scream.

A pillar was falling forward from the last tremor too fast to avoid. "Bunneary!" she shouted, running forward.

ooo

Twilmer jumped as Dil swung his extremely heavy broadsword forward with ease. The weapon was both longer and wider than Dil and Twilmer knew a few hits with that sword would spell a permanent game over for her. The sword was as much a part of him as his own legs and arms. He used it as a shield to block all of her staff related attacks.

Twilmer jumped back and put her staff into her inventory. It was going to be no help to her. Instead, she withdrew a small crossbow. It was an assassin's crossbow and a banned item in the games. She had confiscated it from an assassin she had banned well over a month ago. She knew she only had one shot and if she hit his neck, then he would be distracted enough and she would have a chance.

Next to her, Victoria's ice attacks were keeping the Steelix at bay. Twilmer smiled at the Weavile and was impressed by how far she had come since she and Twilmer had first met on the mountains of the newbie areas. Twilmer turned her attention back to the swordsman dodging his attack. She readied the crossbow and as Dil swung forward, she shot the crossbow.

It narrowly missed him. "DAMN IT!" Twilmer shouted.

Dil just smiled up at her. "For a grace master, you sure have terrible aim."

"It's because I'm not a sniper or merciless PKer like you!" Twilmer jumped forward and met the broad side of the sword. Pain seared through her body and she flew back, hitting the wall and falling down. She ached more then she could ever remember, cursing the stupid nerve sensors of PWO virtual reality helmets, though they had never worked this well before. Twilmer tried to access her items, but found that the menu screen was blocked. "You hacked!" Twilmer shouted, and then cursed herself for sounding so surprised.

"I don't follow the rules set down by this useless corporation." Dil grinned. Twilmer looked around. Time was running out and she had to find Satoshi. What was she going to do? There was no time to think as Dil attacked her once more. She dodged and landed hard a few feet away. Her entire body ached and she wished her party was here, but knew they would not be able to get into the room.

"Well this sucks," Twilmer remarked. She swallowed hard against the lump in her throat. She was weaponless and defenseless. All she had now was her grace and her slightly heeled boots. "Too bad they aren't stiletto," Twilmer sighed.

ooo

"She should be on the top floor by now." Aura said as they got into the elevator.

"That is if she made it there." Drix panted as he smashed the top-level-button.

"It would take about 30 seconds to get to the top." Aura commented while the doors closed.

"Well we better prepare." Drix said while throwing a potion at her. They hadn't reached the top floor when the doors slid open revealing a large wall of rock blocking the way. They could hear a faint "Weav, Weavile" behind it. "Aura, would you be so kind?" Drix asked, pointing to the wall of rocks.

"With pleasure." Aura scissored her swords and focused her attack power on their very tips, using Point Smash to clear the rock wall away. A surprised Twilmer and a shadow of another person met their eyes. Twilmer looked worse for the wear, though Aura knew that her looks wouldn't matter to her now with the danger she was in. She blamed this observance on the fact that she hadn't been able to design anything in quite some time due to PWO.

"Dil?" Drix raised his eyebrow as the dust from the attack fell and they were able to see clearly.

"You both here?" The Top Ten member sounded amused at both their sudden appearance and Twilmer's sigh of relief.

"Hmm." Aura stretched her neck until it gave a nasty cracking sound. "You've got work to do, princess. We'll take care of that creep for ya. Go find the puppet master."

Twilmer opened her mouth and was about to protest, but Drix just waved his hand dismissively. "You've got more important work to do. We've got your back covered."

Twilmer nodded and fled the room, taking the steps to the upper floor. Drix looked at their opponent; While they had never fought Dil before, both Drix and Aura knew the man's reputation. He clicked his tongue, as he got into his fighting stance.

"This might actually require some effort this time." He watched as Aura had put on the goggles she usually wore on her head; this was one of the signs that she was getting serious.

"I'm not very good at teamwork, you know?" The swordswoman smirked, as she got her katanas ready.

Drix only laughed.

"You're going to get in my way?"

"As if!"

They both lunged at their opponent exactly at the same second.

ooo

End Part 34

and yep, I was right, My Portfolio has been turned in by now XD now to get to those three 2.5 page essays I have waiting for me . procrastination, gotta love it :P


	35. Unfair Match Ups

Pokémon World Online

Part 35: Unfair match Ups

Disclaimer: I do not own the usual. Part 35 and I'm 5 away from 40. Goodness gracious! Dedicated to all my lovely readers and to the new friends I've made. Not much to say right now except I hope you enjoy. The butter knife thing is an inside joke thing of sorts.

ooo

"Bunneary!" Emily23 shouted. The pillar had fallen on top of her dear partner. Arcanine ran over and used a flamethrower to blast most of the pillar away except for the bottom part so that he would not accidently hit Bunneary. He then pushed the rest of it away with his head. There was Bunneary motionless. "Bunneary," she gasped, picking up her small friend and holding her tightly. She was not responding.

"Hurry up; more of the ten are coming! Where did Drix and the rest of them get off to?" Maple looked around. Sure enough, a female wearing crimson armor swooped in on a Dragonite. "Girl, move!" Maple shouted to Emily23, but she stayed kneeling where she was, holding her dear partner who was deathly still.

"Arrr!" Arcanine picked her up gently in his mouth and place her on his back. He then sped away to the stairs, bounding up them.

Emily23 sat on his back blank, cuddling Bunneary. "You can't be..."

ooo

Twilmer was thankful that Drix and Aura had shown up when they did because she would probably have been killed for a second time. That thought didn't bode well with her. . She didn't feel right leaving Aura to fend for herself like that (Drix she could really care less about), but she knew both swordsmen could take care of themselves. She finally reached the top floor and entered Satoshi's office. She mentally slapped herself for wanting to knock on the door and prepared herself to not bow before the game's so called "creator." She used a white boot-clad foot to smash the door in, Weavile behind her.

"I see you've regained your true form," Satoshi smirked at her. Around him were gathered an Espeon, Umbreon, Flareon, Vaporeon, Jolteon, Leafeon, and Glaceon. None of them looked very happy. "I was actually trying to come up with a new Eevee evolution, but it seems someone has killed my supervising artist."

Twilmer looked up at him in surprise. This was news to her, but who had killed Ken Sugimori? Twilmer found that her inventory was unlocked now and took advantage of this opportunity to withdraw her elemental staff, which worked wonders on those who relied on special attacks.

"You wish to fight me? What exactly will that accomplish?" Satoshi asked, but didn't wait for Twilmer to answer. "I always loved playing and collecting insects when I was a boy so when I heard of a world where one collected and befriended creatures, I had to make it my own."

"A world of your own...so you didn't create the Pokémon world," Twilmer sighed and then gave Satoshi a stern look. "Sorry to break your moment of nostalgia, but I didn't come here to talk." Twilmer pointed the top of her staff at Satoshi.

He began to laugh manically and then glared at her. "If a battle is what you want, then here it comes, however please allow me a test first to see if you are worthy. Go my eeveelutions," Satoshi commanded. The Pokémon merely looked back at him. "Did you not hear me?"

"They won't listen to you, Satoshi. They're as real as you or me now and they won't take orders like they used to." Twilmer glared at him.

"I beg to differ," Satoshi smirked and held up a tiny, infant Eevee. "Attack her or your little sister will be permanently deleted." The eeveelutions looked at Satoshi with a look that could kill. They then turned to Twilmer.

"Leaf," the Leafeon muttered. Twilmer could still slightly understand their language and the Leafeon had just muttered sorry.

"It's okay," Twilmer sighed and held her staff at ready as the Eeveelutions prepared to attack.

ooo

Guy stretched as he arrived at Greensboro. He fingered the pouch at his side that carried the potent potion he had made from the flower he had discovered in the forest. Caesar fluttered lazily beside him. Guy had walked the entire way to build up his character's stamina. He may have been a simple herbalist, but he needed his strength were he to ever face a fast opponent like a grace master. "Hello brother," Guy heard a voice behind him as he entered the heart of the city. He turned and saw Trellaine waving at him; Haunter drifting around his head playfully.

"The hell? I thought you were forming an army of some sort on Firewall or something," Guy looked up at him confused.

"Bah, it was too much trouble. Besides, when I heard one of the brotherhood was near, I had to come and be the welcoming party." Trellaine smiled as Haunter did a loop-de-loop.

"Got any oranges? I'm starving," Guy smiled; glad to see his old friend.

"You know I've always got one or two up my sleeve," Trellaine shook his sleeve and Haunter held out his hands, catching five of the fruits, "hmm, I must have gathered more than I thought. Anyways, now is not the time for joking. It seems things are worse than we first thought. Dream wants revenge on Twilmer and she is stopping at nothing to get it. She also seems deranged and has brought about a series of events that threatens all gamers and the like. You know, everyday business for the brotherhood."

"Dream?" Guy placed a finger to his chin. "Not that naked woman in the forest..."

"The very same," Trellaine nodded. "I believe you had something to do with that."

"How was I supposed to know she'd become a crazed murderous maniac? I swear I don't understand women," Guy shook his head. Caesar landed on his head and rested. Guy frowned, not liking the fact that his head had become a perch. "Twilmer's that administrator that got turned into a Pichu, right?"

"The very same. It's up to us to help set things straight once again. Funny how it always comes to this. Anyways, I'm going to scout ahead and meet up with you later. You mean Twilmer and her party." Trellaine began to walk away.

"What do you mean?" Guy asked, turning around fast and aggravating Caesar who floated tiredly off of his head. "Sorry," Guy uttered to his partner.

"I mean you need to finish what you started with Dream. You made her, though unintentionally, so you must unmake her."

"I still don't see how this is my fault," Guy sighed.

"Oh, and take this," Trellaine walked past the remains of what had been a hotel and tossed a butter knife towards Guy over his shoulder. Guy caught the knife and could feel the energy pulsing within it. "It'll be useful." Trellaine then teleported away.

"Why does he tempt me like this?" Guy shook his head, placing the butter knife in his inventory. It was a powerful artifact to have, but also very impractical. "Well, I guess we have to wait until Twilmer comes through here. That shouldn't take long, should it?" Guy asked Caesar who resumed his perch atop Guy's head and was gently snoozing. "Never mind," he sighed, sitting down on a bench.

ooo

Twilmer dodged a flamethrower and a hydro pump and came beside Victoria. "We can't take them out as a group, but if we work on them individually, then we should be able to cut through their numbers somewhat." The Weavile nodded in agreement. "I'll take out Flareon so that he can't hurt you, no offense but you are weak to fire, and you take out Espeon. We'll meet in the middle once we're finished.

Twilmer used her staff to smack the Flareon right in the center of its head. It hadn't been expecting the attack and it fell back, shaking its head in anger. It lunged forward as Twilmer dodged a razor leaf from Leafeon. Twilmer noticed that the Eeveelutions didn't want to fight as much as she did. She prayed that they would stay back, but knew that they wouldn't because of their love for their little sister. Twilmer had to be careful because now that Pokémon were real, she didn't want to kill any innocent Pokémon; however, as Flareon singed the back of her robe, Twilmer changed her tone slightly.

She leaped forward, slashing at the Pokémon, who leaped away, but she used the agility of a grace master to meet it as it came down. Several more moves like that and Flareon was easily tired out. It seemed that Satoshi had overestimated the 'eons' as Flareon was already tired, and then it must be inexperienced. Twilmer made quick work of the Flareon, who grew tired and was out of the match. Victoria easily took care of Espeon in this same manner. The two then targeted Leafeon and Glaceon. That left Umbreon, Jolteon, and Vaporeon.

"Okay, it'll be easier to take out Vaporeon and Jolteon if I'm a Pichu," Twilmer used her pendant to turn into her Pichu form. All three of the eons left appeared more advanced than their siblings. "Alright, ready?" Twilmer asked Victoria, who nodded. Satoshi simply watched with a smirk on his face.

"Everything's going according to plan," he thought to himself.

ooo

Drix's sword met with Dil's broad sword. It was easily deflected as the broad sword was made for defense. While Drix kept Dil busy in the front, Aura used both of her katanas to attack his wide open back side. Dil hissed and jumped back. Aura knew he would not make the same mistake twice, so they couldn't rely on that move again. Drix was panting heavily beside Aura. They may have had the advantage of two against one, but both of them were tired from the previous fights, thus Dil still had the upper hand.

"Is that all you've got?" Dil smirked. "Honestly, I thought the two best non-top ten gamers would put up a better fight."

"It's not our fault the other top ten members gave us a little trouble," Drix panted.

"What are you talking about? The ones who attacked you down stairs are..."

"Yes, we killed them. Seems that our little party is in the lead," Aura smirked, Sparia keeping an eye on the Steelix behind her.

"Not for long," Dil lunged forward and the two clumsily dodged. Aura threw one of her katanas at him, which he easily deflected. Drix hit him as Aura retrieved her katana. Sparia was doing her best to keep Steelix at bay with her water attacks, but the giant Pokémon was surprisingly fast for his huge size.

Drix's broadsword pierced Dil's flesh swiftly and almost as soon as the strike fell, the blade was pulled back with a sickening, wet sound. Dil swayed, but stayed on his feet. The wound wasn't fatal, at least not yet. Keeping his distance from the tired duo, he fished out a hyper potion from his inventory.

"Oh no you don't!" Aura, being faster than Drix due to her light swords, lunged forward. Dil managed to take a sip from the potion before he had to block her attack and the vial fall from his hands and shattered on the dusty floor. The Top Ten member hissed something nasty towards her before blocking another blow from Drix and swiftly avoiding a slash from the twin katanas.

"Ok, time to get a little bit serious here." Dil huffed, his face sporting an annoyed expression. "Guess the warm-up is over."

He swung his weapon in lazy circles, eyes shifting between two swords masters. Drix had both good attack power and defense, but his movements were slowed due to his blade's weight. Aura was the quicker of the two, her agility and attack high because of the double swords, but thanks to that, her defense was almost non-existent. One serious chain of attacks could probably take care of her...

He focused his attack on Drix.

Drix parried the attack just in time, silently wondering why the strength of his opponent had gone up so suddenly. Had it really been just a warm-up for him?

Aura attacked from behind, but Dil avoided the damage. Still keeping his swords crossed with Drix's, his arm moved so fast she never noticed it before his elbow hit her straight on the face.

She swayed, losing her balance. "Shit!" Aura yelped in surprise and rolled on the ground, the blade of broadsword piercing the spot where her head had been just a second before. Drix narrowed his eyebrows as he watched Aura wipe blood from her nose.

"Is that any way to treat a lady, you fucker?" He hissed, jumping in with another attack. Dil blocked, and then retaliated, but Drix was faster. His sword left a nasty cut on Dil's other side.

"Dammit, it's not fair." Aura hissed towards her battle partner, pleased that her nose finally had stopped bleeding. "You get to cut him twice, but it's me who gets smacked in the face!" Her nose wasn't really broken, but it sure felt like it. She sniffed experimentally, scowling at the sting of pain.

"Are you done chatting?" Dil laughed, as he readied for another attack. There seemed to be a new strength in him, almost as if he wasn't bothered by his wound at all. Was it really just from one sip of Hyper Potion? Neither of the two sword masters wanted to think what could have happened if he had taken the whole vial.

"Where did he get that strength?" Drix hissed, panting as he leaned on his sword for support.

"That's for me to know and you to never find out," Dil chided immaturely.

"Well, now we know he's using a strength booster for sure, eh?" Drix smirked at Aura.

"Enough chatter!" Dil lunged forward towards Aura. Instead of backing up Aura this time, he examined Dil from a distance. There was a strange marking of an orange dragon on the side. Before, when Drix and Dil had crossed swords in combat, the dragon symbol had been whole. Now, Drix noticed that part of the tail was missing. Drix looked around on the floor and noticed some orange drops on the ground. Aha! He ran forward and pretended to use a low attack on Dil, but instead he reached his hand down to touch the orange drops. He lifted his hand to his nose and smelled.

"As I thought," Drix wiped his hand on his pants, "Hercules nectar."

"Huh?" Aura asked, confused.

Steelix brought his tail up and smashed it down. Drix pulled Aura behind a rock to dodge it. "That dragon crest on his sword is actually a quite cleverly disguised vial where he keeps his Hercules nectar. It must travel from his lips into his sword using some bizarre hacked coding."

"So that's what that vial was. I didn't know one sip would increase his strength this much. A full vial triples your strength, so we can be thankful that-" Aura was cut off by Dil's taunting.

"Are we done playing hide and seek?" he shouted.

"How do we beat him now?" Aura asked as she and Drix jumped away from the rock as Steelix unleashed a tail slam.

"Fuck if I know," Drix growled.

ooo

Twilmer used her electric attacks to easily take out Vaporeon; however, Victoria was having trouble with Umbreon, who was obviously the strongest Eevee sibling. The fallen siblings littered the ground, unconscious not dead. Jolteon was also a hassle as it kept absorbing Twilmer's attacks. Twilmer felt light headed from using so much electricity. She remembered that Pichus tend to do themselves harm while attacking and cursed her Pichu body once again.

"This is ridiculous," Twilmer sighed as she fell and landed on her little Pichu butt. She stood up and rubbed it. She was getting weaker and more aggravated the more electricity she used. "That's it, form change," Twilmer grumped, pulling at her charm.

"No you don't," Satoshi called and before Twilmer could use her charm, Satoshi whistled and a Starly flew into the room and grabbed it. Twilmer began to choke as the bird pulled it higher and higher. The bird then jerked its head and Twilmer fell out of the neck. Victoria caught her and placed her on the ground. Starly brought the charm over to Satoshi, who examined it.

"Give that back you bastard!" Twilmer shouted angrily.

"I see you've learned some language from those companions of yours," Satoshi grinned. He pointed to the corner of the room and a Graveler came over, grabbing Twilmer. Victoria jumped on top of an over head light and growled down at the Graveler who had tried to catch her, fainting it with an ice beam. "This is an artifact blessed with the power of Arceus," Satoshi turned the charm. Victoria lunged down and tried to grab it, but a Machamp knocked her out of the way with a focus punch. Another Graveler entered the room and held Twilmer captive.

"Why are all of these Pokémon listening to you?" Twilmer asked, struggling to get free of the Graveler's four-armed grip.

"They were my subjects before they were real and now that they are real, their loyalty has set in and they will support me until the end." Satoshi smirked at this intelligence and cleared his throat. "You won't be needing this charm anymore," Satoshi clenched the charm hard until it broke. "Strength cheats really help," he grinned.

"NO-wait PWO corp. uses cheats? Never mind that, you bastard! You fucking destroyed my sanity thingy! Damn you to hell!" Twilmer struggled, but the Graveler tightened his grip until Twilmer had to stop as the pain had become unbearable.

"So much for your little bit of hope now," Satoshi shook his head at Twilmer who's head hung. She was, once again, stuck as a Pichu. She felt tears sting her eyes, but she held them back. She wouldn't grant Satoshi that bit of weakness, but now... things seemed hopeless.

ooo

End Part 35

Things always seem to get worse before they get better...


	36. The Reasons I'm Afraid

Pokémon World Online

Part 36: The Reasons I'm Afraid

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. Will things get better in this part? We'll see...

ooo

Helium had, unbeknownst to anyone due mainly to the fact that everyone was too busy to notice, slipped into the stairwell behind Twilmer; however, he did not know the building anywhere near as well as Twilmer did and thus he had gotten himself lost. He wondered from room to room, but he couldn't find the grand office from before. It didn't help that the boy had a terrible sense of direction; another reason he had chosen to go to a relatively small college. The hallway area was lined with many pictures of different gamers and their partners. There were statues of various Pokémon and other fancy decorations covering the black marble walls. Helium felt slightly intimidated by how high the ceiling was and by the fact that the area was so dimly lit. Anything could be lurking in the corners and shadows of the hallway. Several other hallways branched off from the hallway he was on and even more from those. The place was an impossible maze.

Suddenly an idea hit Helium. "Vileplume, do you think you can sniff out Twilmer's scent?" he asked his partner. Vileplume looked up at him questionably and then shook his head and pointed at his own nose. "That's right, you'd need her scent. I don't really have anything of hers," Helium sighed. "Wait a second, maybe she still smells like a Pichu!" Helium excitedly withdrew a small vile of Pichu hair from his inventory. Pichu hair was perfect for shocking certain potions into a useable form. Vileplume sniffed the hairs and then sniffed the air. Vileplume grinned and took off after the smell. Helium followed behind him.

From the shadows, Dream and Nightmare had been watching Helium. She smirked, "I knew if we waited, the right opportunity would come along." Dream kept to the shadows as she followed silently behind Helium.

ooo

Emily23 looked at her fallen partner. If it weren't for the steady rise and fall of her chest, Emily23 would have assumed Bunneary had passed on. Emily23 was perched awkwardly on the back of the Arcanine. She heard a shout and barely had time to react before a hyper beam from the Dragonite rider nearly hit her. She jumped off of Arcanine's back as the attack hit where she had been sitting. Arcanine growled and let loose a fire blast. Dragonite unleashed a hyper beam and the two attacks hit creating a huge blast and the room filled with smoke form the two blasts. Emily23 tried to run to get out of the way; however, she tripped and dropped her partner. "Bunneary?" she called, looking around her, though the smoke was too thick to see very far.

Dragonite heard her voice and fired a hyper beam in her direction. Arcanine countered with a fire blast and the room shook form the combined force of the attacks. Emily23 got up carefully and ran in a direction--she wasn't sure which-- trying to find Bunneary. She tripped and cut her leg. She hissed at the pain as she tried to stand and fumbled. She took a deep breath and stood up fast, ignoring the searing pain coming from her leg, as she searched for her partner.

ooo 

Aura gasped lightly, tired after repelling yet another chain of attacks. Drix was holding on, although she could see that the prolonging battle had been exhausting for him as well. "We've got to attack tactically. Slashing wide open won't do a thing." She wiped her forehead with the back of her hand, her eyes never leaving a clearly amused Dil for a second.

"You've got any ideas?"

"Yeah, I think I do. If you can lure him to those pillars... I might be able to make them collapse with Point Smash, but I can't guarantee it will work. Or that we won't be buried, for that matter."

"Sounds risky." Drix smirked.

"It is."

"Hell, let's do it then."

Drix rushed forward, dodging the first blow and then leaped backwards, slowly moving in the direction of the mentioned pillars. They looked heavy; gray and black marble would surely do serious damage if they fell over, but if they didn't risk it...

Aura moved silently, hoping that Dil, who was still in a battle rage, wouldn't notice her. Making sure Drix was keeping up with him, she passed behind their backs stealthily and crouched behind the pillars. Drix was in position, so she took couple of long breaths to steady herself and concentrate. She raised her arms, ready to use the special attack, but a pained and slightly surprised grunt caught her attention.

"Drix!"

"Just do it!" The swordsman yelled back at her, trying to stay upright with the broadsword piercing his side; the leg he had barely healed not so long ago caused his stance to slip and he became a target. "For fuck's sake, just do it, woman!"

She gritted her teeth and raised her arms again, focusing the attack power onto her blades and flinging them at one of the pillars. The look of surprise on Dil's face was priceless, and even though the pain Drix couldn't help but to smirk with triumph. Ignoring the pain in his abdomen, he jumped away, blade sliding out easily. The rumble of the collapsing pillars shook the whole building, from the topmost floor to the cellars, where some of them still fought.

Aura coughed as she swayed her hand in front of her face, trying to get the dust away, but her efforts were in vain. She checked the surroundings; it looked more like a mountain area now; everything was covered with pieces of debris, rocks and crushed marble; even half of the wall was missing, the building somehow holding on and not collapsing. She could see the clear sky outside; they really were on a high floor. Gathering herself up, she looked for any other signs of life, finally an annoyed groan caught her attention.

"Drix, are you ok?" She rushed to his side, the swordsman sprawled on the floor, rocks missing him by pure chance.

"I'm fucking fantastic." He huffed, but made no effort to move. "You told me it was going to be risky, but damn it, woman, you have some crazy ideas."

"Heh." Aura kneeled by him and ran briefly trough her inventory, but unfortunately, she really was out of all her healing items. From the look on Drix's face, she could see that he was thinking about the same thing.

"How's your nose?"

"Don't try to change the subject." Aura merely scowled at him. "You've got to get some medical help, we still don't know what will happen if any of us die. Well, except for Twilmer, at least. Aha!" After browsing through most of her quite packed inventory - she was an item collector, after all - Aura took out a microscopically small vial which contained a light blue liquid.

"What's that?" Drix scowled. He wasn't about to be a guinea pig for some weird experiments the crazy woman could do on him.

"It's called Lugia's Tears. It's an item I got in one of the quests which is retired now, so don't even think about getting one for yourself. It can heal every injury, even a fatal wound." She uncorked the bottle, a sweet scent filling the air around them.

"Leave it. It's not that bad, no use in wasting such an item."

"Shut up."

"I said stop!" He grabbed her wrist as she was about to spill some of the blue content onto his injured side. "Damn it woman, you never listen, do you?"

"Not to a stupid idiot like you. Shut the hell up and let me do my work."

"You're not wasting that on me; that could be worth millions now!"

"So what?" Aura shrugged. "It's going to be used one day, so why not now?"

"Because I said so!" Drix was stubborn, he knew that. But on the other hand - although he would never admit it - he was well aware of fact that Aura didn't like to use up the items she had been collecting for so long. "Get your hands off me, now!"

"Well, the roles have switched!" Aura scowled as she slapped his wound, enough to make him let out a surprised yelp and release her wrists. "Now it's you who is a stubborn idiot, so stop being such a child and just accept help!"

"The fuck you do that for?" He winced, but stopped her from using the potion again. "You're really a psycho. I said I'm fine!"

"Argh!" This was so frustrating that Aura actually screamed in anger. Drix could almost see steam rising from her ears. "Why can't you just lay still and shut the fuck up?!"

"Why can't you just let go of me?!"

"Why can't you fucking understand that your health is more important to me then a stupid potion?!" Her eyes widened in surprise as she realized what had just spilled from her lips. Drix had finally shut up and blinked once, twice, before a smirk tugged on the corners of his mouth.

"Shit, I never knew you actually had a crush on me." He laughed, but then the sound died on his lips as she hit his wound again, looking positively furious. "Ouch! You are one crazy bitch though, you know that?"

"Shut the hell up, otherwise I will finish you off myself." Aura hissed, clasping her hand around his smirking mouth and tipping the vial lightly. A few clear blue drops fell on the bleeding flesh, closing it almost instantly. It didn't regenerate his hit points, but the gaping wound was gone. The vial was empty as well.

"I still think you shouldn't have wasted it." Drix murmured more to himself then to her as she finally took her hand back. "I could have done fine without it."

"Sheesh, fine." She rolled her eyes, tired of the silly fight. "It's my item; I could do what I wanted with it."

Drix still lay on the ground, but as Aura lifted the edge of his blood soiled shirt a bit to inspect the injury, she found nothing. The potion really did work.

"Thanks." Drix said quite unexpectedly, as he grabbed her hand that she was about to move away. She blinked in surprise at the sudden move.

"You're welcome." She was about to say something else, until a soft sound of shifting rocks caught their attention. Turning around, Aura looked over at the fallen debris, her eyes widening in shock.

"Oh you've got to be fucking kidding me." Drix raised himself on his elbows.

"Now that this touching scene is over," Dil dusted off his clothes and waved a hand in their direction, quite dismissively, "I think it's good for us to continue. You actually managed to cut down half of my HP with that silly attack of yours." He fished out his broadsword from the rocks and cracked his knuckles, ready to fight.

"Well fuck." Aura groaned, raising to her feet and taking out her katanas.

"You can say that again." Drix sighed, as he got up from the dusty ground as well.

ooo

"Why are we sitting outside waiting?" Guy asked Caesar, who was once again using his head as a perch. "I mean honestly, with things as desperate as they are now, I doubt she would even come through this town when she's finished with business in that building." Guy stood up and watched the building, when suddenly he noticed a huge blast of rubble fall away. "The hell?"

""Fleee," Caesar looked confused.

"My thoughts exactly. Whatever that blast was, that cannot be good. I say we go up there and give whoever a hand, should they need it. Do you agree?" The Butterfree nodded. "Alright then, here's some strength increasing powder. You know what to do from here." Caesar nodded as Guy sprinkled the powder over his partner. Butterfree flew behind him and grabbed a hold of him. With a small grunt of effort, the strength powder took effect and Butterfree was able to fly with Guy in tow. They made their way quickly to the gaping hole near the top floor.

He entered to find Aura and Drix locked in combat with Dil. "Looks like I needed to even up the odds." Guy was dropped unceremoniously to the floor as Caesar's strength potion wore off. "So much for a heroic entrance."

"Who are you?" Dil asked.

"I know you! You're that herbalist who hangs around Trellaine, right?" Aura asked,

"Dr. W. D. Guy at your service," Guy bowed humbly before shifting through his inventory for his ultimate weapon.

"Big deal, you have one more gamer on your side. I still have nearly half of my hit points and I'm level 100." Dil laughed as Steelix circled behind him. Butterfree hit the Steelix with a bug buzz which only served to anger the huge iron snake.

"You know nothing of what is coming for you," Guy furrowed his brows as he pulled the butter knife from his inventory.

ooo

"Fuck, shit, damn it, whore," Twilmer mumbled a stream of curse words and words she assumed were curse words as the Graveler held her, appalled by her lingo. "Let me go!" she scowled, wondering how she let herself get into this position. She should've known that something like this would've happened, but no, she had to get cocky. From the way tremors had struck the building earlier, it didn't look like anyone would come to help her out anytime soon. She felt extremely alone.

"You're not alone," Arceus' voice popped into her head. That's right; she was a Pokémon now and was more in tune with Pokémon related things. "You have your friends."

"Aura and the others are too busy for me. I should've learned when Derek dumped me that the only person I can depend on is myself and Victoria." Twilmer grumbled to the voice in her head.

"It's sad that your dearest friend is--or rather was--bits of data. Can't you think of anyone else?" Arceus asked.

"Well," Twilmer strained her thoughts. Who could Arceus be talking about?

"TWILMER!" Helium burst into the room, Vileplume at his side. Twilmer had never been so glad to see him before in her life. The Graveler was so startled that it loosened its grip and Twilmer escaped. Victoria used an Ice beam to faint the huge rock.

"Oh god, a gay herbalist. What can he do for you?" Satoshi sighed, waving his hand. A portal of darkness opened up behind him and the prince of darkness himself entered the room; Darkrai. Darkrai turned and looked at Twilmer. She felt fear gripping her stomach as she stepped backwards. She wasn't even sure why she was afraid.

"I can do more for her than you know." Helium gave Satoshi a determined look.

ooo

End Part 36

Nothing much, but the plot is moving forward a bit, eh? And no, I haven't forgotten about Dream.


	37. Special 4: Redemption

Pokémon World Online

Special 4: Part 37: Redemption

Disclaimer: Yagasaki belongs to Treecko(no) and as such I feel it right to dedicate this part to him. I realized I'd been spoiling you guys by constantly continuing the plot XD so here's a nice break from the action and also an explanation for some things that had been happening and such.

ooo

When Ontario woke from his unusually long and restful slumber, he noticed he was utterly alone. Dream was gone. He stood quickly and looked every which way, but alas she was nowhere to be found. "Dream?" He called out, quickly pulling his armor back on. He ran to the top of the hill beside him and scanned the barren landscape of Firewall Mountain. His suspicions confirmed that Dream did indeed leave him, Ontario sank to the ground, leaning against a large rock. He had truly meant nothing to her...

Machop clambered over the rocks and sat beside Ontario, not looking at him. "She was just using me, wasn't she?" he asked, turning his large shield around in his hands. "And I fell for it and betrayed everyone. I gave that...that bitch enough information on Twilmer for her to do some serious damage." Machop didn't say anything, playing with a rock on the ground. "There's no sense hanging around here, then. How do we get out?" Ontario mused. Arceus has flown them in and he doubted the god would do anything for him now. Firewall was so large that if Twilmer and her party had shown up, then they could be miles and miles away--same for Dream, now that he thought of it. The barrier surrounding Firewall not only kept gamers out, but gamers in as well.

With nothing to do and no one by his side save his partner, Ontario made his way clumsily down the hill and into the barren valley of Firewall. Machop followed him, not looking at him. Ontario turned to her and fished in his inventory for a treat...and found that a warp stone had been placed there. The warp stone would take him back into Greensboro. "So she does care about me somewhat," Ontario grinned, taking out the warp stone and holding it firmly. "Hold my leg," he ordered Machop, forgetting the feeling of compassion he had for her earlier. Machop silently obeyed as Ontario activated the warp stone and the bleak scenery around him disappeared.

He reappeared in the middle of Greensboro. As it was one of the larger cities and many people used warp stones to return to this city, no one so much as batted an eye as Ontario appeared. He looked around and noticed a building in ruins. Several gamers were already gathered around the building. "What's going on?" he asked, but was ignored as gamers began to push and shove to get a look at what was happening.

Ontario made his way back out of the crowd, deciding he'd eventually hear from someone else what was occurring. He turned and found himself face to shield with his old rival. "Yagasaki?" Ontario looked up in surprise.

Yagasaki was much taller than Ontario, who was rather short and stockily built. He had exaggerated Egyptian features and was wearing an aikidogi and sandals. His long, black hair was tied back in a single braid. He had an impressive looking sword on his back, but as a defender he would never wield it; it was mostly there for show. "Well if it isn't Shieldlover or whatever you named yourself."

"It's Ontario now," he looked up sternly at his rival, shifting his large shield agitatedly.

"Whatever you call yourself now, you will always be a wuss." Yagasaki shifted his sword so that it rested more comfortably on his shoulder. He held up his small, pointed shield arrogantly.

"What are you doing here?" Ontario asked.

Yagasaki grunted in irritation. He hated small talk and preferred to be more to the point. "I'm here because," he pointed at the rubble, "he's here."

"Who?" Ontario asked, trying to see through the large crowd of people.

"Doesn't matter." Yagasaki shrugged.

"Why were you with those assassins earlier? Did King Phillip put you up to that?" Ontario was burning with questions.

"No. I killed him." Yagasaki looked Ontario directly in the eye, causing him to back up.

"You...what?" Ontario looked up at his long time rival, a cold chill going down his spine.

"I killed him." Yagasaki shrugged once again, fishing King Phillip's crown from his inventory to show as proof. "I joined his band under the guise of a defender in hopes that my defense would raise. I am not actually a defender, you know that, right?" Ontario didn't, but he nodded. Never had his long time rival been this forward with him. "He committed unspeakable crimes against me and he got what he deserved."

"How can you say that? He was our leader!" Ontario shouted. Machop looked back and forth between the two trainers, noticing that Yagasaki's long time partner, a Scyther, was not beside him.

"Chop, ma!" Machop tugged on his pant leg and mimicked a Scyther. Ontario ignored her, pulling his leg away. Ontario held his shield sideways, revealing the sharpened edges that could be used for attacking.

"You wish to attack me? Yagasaki raised an eyebrow. "I will do to you what I did to him. He did not come back when I killed him as gamers usually do."

"He didn't?" Ontario looked confused. Before either side could move to strike, there was a crash. Ontario looked over to see Ken Sugimori emerge from the rubble.

"Mr. Sugimori," Yagasaki bowed deeply.

"You're the one who hired that band of assassins to try and take down Twilmer!" Ontario shouted, turning form Yagasaki to Ken Sugimori.

"What?" "He's in cahoots with assassins?" "Can't be, he's one of the seven." The crowd murmured excitedly to one another as Ken Sugimori brushed himself off. He looked through the rubble for his Ninetails and found only a body.

Mr. Sugimori grunted and turned, locking eyes with Ontario. "You. You're part of that party of that little bitch, Twilmer. That damn Slowbro of theirs killed my Ninetails."

"Max must've evolved, then. He did that?" Ontario tried his hardest not to laugh.

Before Ontario could even blink, Mr. Sugimori was lunging forward, a small sword made from diamond in his hand. Machop rushed forward and hit his leg hard, knocking him to the side. Mr. Sugimori growled and went after Machop. His sword flashed as he struck something harder than the flesh of a Machop. He looked up to see Ontario holding his shield protectively in front of Machop. She looked up at him curiously. "No one hurts my partner," he hissed, throwing his shield forward. Mr. Sugimori deflected it and it came flying back to Ontario like a boomerang.

Yagasaki watched the fight, bored. "I'm tired of serving petty leaders who only kill." Yagasaki turned and left the area.

"Yagasaki?" Ontario called as he watched his rival leave, then yelped and jumped back as Mr. Sugimori nearly gave him a close shave. "Screw playing fair." Ontario reached into his inventory and pulled out an assassin's bow he had found during their last encounter with the assassins. Machop ran forward, knocking Mr. Sugimori off balance yet again. Ontario aimed, and hit Mr. Sugimori right in the neck. His eyes rolled into his head as he fell over, dead. He was already weakened form the fall, so the kill came as no surprise. Just as Yagasaki had said, no timer until resurrection appeared above his body. "What have I done?"

The crowd around him did not approve of him killing one of the seven. They began to grow rowdy. "Time to get out of here." Machop nodded her head in agreement and helped Ontario bust through the crowd. Once out of the middle, he ran as fast as he could. He darted into several alleyways and into an abandoned looking building. The crowd was not aware of his location and ran harmlessly past the building. "What the hell is going on? Mr. Sugimori hiring assassins, Yagasaki saying he killed King Phillip and is not a warrior, Dream..." he trailed off as he heard a smooth, familiar voice behind him.

"Aren't you that defender that's in Twilmer's party?" Elra asked as she stepped from the shadows, Vaporeon at her side.

ooo

End Part 37

I know it's short, but basically it's doing some explaining. If it seems confusing, don't worry. All will be clear in time.


	38. The Puppet Master

Pokémon World Online

Part 38: The Puppet Master

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. I haven't been saying much up here lately.

ooo

Drix looked from Guy to Dil and shook his head. "A butter knife? Are you kidding me?" Drix raised an eyebrow.

"You mean this thing?" Guy asked, turning it into a six foot long sword.

"Alright, I've said nothing Drix held up his hands.

"Where's Twilmer?" Guy asked; blocking an attack Dil had delivered him; however, he did not retaliate nor attack back.

"She ran upstairs with Satoshi. I bet she's in serious need of our help," Aura gasped. She had forgotten about their little admin in the brawl with Dil, which was understandable considering what they had just gone through.

"You two go on ahead. I'll finish this guy off." Guy swung his butter knife sword around a few times. Pure energy could be sensed coming from the blade.

"Will you be okay? If we couldn't take him together, what makes you think you can take him alone?" Aura asked.

"That butter knife is more powerful than it looks. I think he can handle himself. Now let's find Twilmer!" Aura nodded and the two made their way up the stair case.

"By the way," Drix began casually as they ran up the long flight of stairs, "you were going to say something to me earlier before Dil ruined that little moment. What was it?"

"Never mind that, just keep moving!" Aura ordered.

"No really, what was it?" Drix smirked, looking over his shoulder at the swordswoman.

"Why do you even care?" Aura asked, panting as they climbed.

"Because you mean more to me than any other gamer in this game," Drix looked down at her smugly, enjoying her reaction as she stood completely still on the staircase. "What's wrong? We have a Pichu to save you slowpoke." Drix smirked.

Aura blinked few times, looking quite dumbfonded, then hissed something nasty and ran up the stairs to catch up with the swordsman. "You are absolutely the worst." She hissed again as they jumped over the small gap in the stairs, where they had collapsed from one of the tremors.

"Well, you're a psycho, so I guess that makes us even. Do you actually enjoy hitting wounded people?"

"Well" Aura laughed "Never got a chance to check it in practice, so I guess you will have to find out."

Drix opened his mouth once, and then closed it. He frowned. "Are you teasing me or is it just my imagination?"

"Shut up, we're here." Aura crouched near the entrance to Satoshi's room and peeked inside.

It's hard to suddenly call the biggest influence in your life enemy. Twilmer looked up at Helium and over at Satoshi. She was beginning to doubt herself and her party now. The Darkrai wasn't helping as it manifested her dark thoughts. So this was Satoshi's plan. He knew her too well and there was nothing much she could do. Twilmer looked up as Aura and Drix entered the room, each with their weapons out and ready for combat. Satoshi merely leaned back in his desk chair, enjoying the show. Aura walked over to her, surprised to see her as a Pichu. "Don't," Aura stopped, looking down at Twilmer, who looked up at her, eyes full of hurt. Darkrai grinned as it continued to cause Twilmer's doubts and sorrow grow. "Don't come near me."

"The fuck is your problem?" Drix snapped.

"Like you don't know. You probably only came here to see if the fight had killed me. I mean this is pretty much all my fault. You tried to trick me with that whole 'big fucking family' ideal. Well, I'm smarter than that."

"Who the hell fed you that bullshit?" Drix clenched the hilt of his sword in anger.

"Obviously the smart game designer knows Twilmer's weakness and is preying on that. Much as she might appear cocky, that little air head is insecure," Aura mused in a whisper to Drix so that Twilmer couldn't hear.

"Yeah, I saw that. Whatever. You're not needed here." Twilmer waved them away.

Drix raised an eyebrow. "You're a fucking Pichu and you say you don't need our help?"

"Twilmer, we care about you. You know that. I care about you more than I've ever cared about anyone else. I don't know where these insecurities are coming from, but I'm guessing your ex-boyfriend Derek. Twilmer, we aren't like him. He was a...a...bastard." Helium blushed as the cuss word left his mouth. Twilmer's head snapped up in response to this.

"And this isn't your fault, it's his," Aura pointed her katanas at Satoshi. "Let's finish this guy off once and for all." Satoshi stood from where he was sitting, looking at Aura dangerously. Twilmer merely looked confused.

"Really? Can you beat my newest puppet?" Satoshi grinned as Darkrai leaned forward and then stood upright holding Twilmer by dark strings. Her eyes were down trodden and she appeared so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even notice. "Alright Darkrai, go." Satoshi ordered. Darkrai wasted no time in making Twilmer use an electric attack.

"Aw shit," Drix hissed.

ooo

Guy's eyes widened at the rush of air behind him and seemingly instinctively whirled around and blocked a blurring strike, much to Dil's surprise.

Caesar fluttered to the massive steel snake, who just looked at the tiny Pokémon and seemed to snort before lunging at it. The Butterfree evaded the attack by using Double Team and quickly reappeared behind Steelix, firing a Psybeam at the back of its head. The surprised Steelix hit the ground head first and stayed down for a moment before getting back up, shaking off the dizziness. It wasn't going down easily.

"Heh, you might be hacking like mad, but this Knife is better than any hack. Allow me to demonstrate." Guy said through gritted teeth as he stared into Dil's eyes. Suddenly he vanished and randomly reappeared to Dil's left, swinging at his back. The only thing that saved Dil was the speed hack he had as he only just blocked the surprise attack. They started exchanging blows at an increasing pace, and Dil's face showed confusion at Guy's ability to keep up... Guy's face did too. 'What the hell is going on, it feels like my body is moving on its own!'

ooo

Emily23 felt a soft thump beside her. She looked around through the smoke from the continued exchange of blows from Dragonite and Arcanine and saw Drix's Salamance looking down at her. "Where did you come from? Oh, never mind that, I'm just glad you're here." She hugged Salamence, who smiled down at her. She hadn't been in a single fight yet, and Emily23 was sure it would be pleased to be reunited with her partner. Unlike the typical wild Salamence, she could tell that Drix had trained her well. Majestic and calm - a good mix for a Pokémon of her type.

Salamence looked down at her and nodded; almost as if she could read her thoughts. Salamence lowered her wings and kneeled down so Emily23 could get on. It would be easier to find her Bunneary if she could rise above the smoke and it would be easier to move around without the rubble around her. Emily23 climbed don and drained a max potion as they rose as high as they could. The pain in her leg lessened and she felt rejuvenated.

She checked her map and used the homing feature on her partner. The signal was coming from upstairs? This seemed really odd to Emily23 as the bunny had been too weak to move before. Fearing the worst, she and Salamence blasted away the wall and flew outside. Salamence then opened the wall on the floor right above and the two entered. This was going to be a nasty bill for PWO corp. should they even want to salvage their badly destroyed head quarters.

"Thank you Salamence," Emily23 called to her as she jumped off the Pokémon's back. Salamence roared and shot up into the air to help her own partner. Emily23 began her search. Bunneary was here somewhere...

ooo

Dil and Guy jumped slightly as a Salamence burst into the room from the hall in the outside. It looked around crossly, not seeming to find what it needed and began to fly back outside when Steelix grabbed it with his tail. "You must be Drix's Salamence! Steelix, finish it!" Dil commanded as he and Guy ran forward once again. Salamence did not take kindly to being grabbed and unleashed a flamethrower on Steelix. The giant Pokémon dropped Salamence. She wasted no time in doing away with the steel snake, being at a higher level than she looked. She fired another flamethrower, which hit Dil. He dodged it giving Guy the opening he needed.

The Knife glowed an ominous shade of lavender and he proceeded to slice and dice the Top Ten member with blindingly fast strikes. Dil was hacking, that was a given, but the quick succession of hits depleted his HP at a murderous pace anyway. Until a messed up Dil managed to block one.

"Not like that..." He spat. "Not by a low level."

"As if you have a choice." With that Guy pulled back the Knife and swung down hard. Dil brought up his sword to block and a loud clang rang across the floor. Then Dil's sword shattered. A surprised Dil wasn't far behind as the Knife continued on its path downward, cleanly slicing through him. The two halves disappeared a second later.

ooo

"Shit!" Aura yelped in surprise, rolling away from the incoming thunder attack. "And I was only joking when I called him a puppet master!"

There was something very very wrong going on; Twilmer's body was being controlled, her moves quick like a flash. Electric attacks unleashed from her small body left dark, burnt circles on the marble ground.

She saw Drix dodge a stream of attacks and she focused her attention on the awkward reactions of Twilmer's body; it seemed that the thunder attacks were much more powerful then she could take; with each she winced, and even though under Darkrai's control she couldn't really scream, Aura was quite sure she would.

"A few more minutes of that and she won't be able to take it. Her heart will get electrocuted." The swordswoman frowned, while dodging another one of the furious attacks. "Ah, fuck it."

She sheathed her swords and stepped out of her current hideout between collapsed pieces of ceiling, coming out to stand only few feet from the Pichu.

Twilmer turned towards her, cheeks sparkling dangerously with electricity. Aura merely crossed her arms and stared down at her.

"You're not going to attack me, you know." The black-haired woman seemed confident, even though she had really no proof to back up her words. "Because we both know you're better than that."

Twilmer stirred, Darkrai's commands making her send a shock wave at the woman, but something inside of her resisted, even if for a small while.

"Your boyfriend dumped you, so you hid in the online game. I know it hurts. When Madeleine died I did a lot of stupid things as well." She shrugged, aware that more than one pair of ears heard her now. "But you can't possibly tell me you are that weak, to let others control you. First your ex-boyfriend, now your ex-boss."

Twilmer's eyes hardened; she did not liked to be reprimanded. This fed Darkrai's power over her.

"It's awfully comfortable, isn't it?" Aura's arms slumped a bit, as she continued to talk and at the same time moved to get closer to the admin, who still kept her distance. "To pretend you're the only victim here and letting your inner insecurity to convince you that this snake's words are true." She motioned towards Satoshi with movement of her head. "But unfortunately, the people you dare to call traitors are all up here, fighting for your sake. Getting their asses kicked so you can be free and no Pokémon would have to be deleted." She crouched by Twilmer's side and laid her hand on the fuzzy head. "So come back to us, will ya? Don't let other people take control over you ever again."

There was a moment of strange silence, where Aura was sure her words did come across and Twilmer heard it. Something in the Pichu eyes of hers reflected what she felt; a weight of Aura's hand on her head was a comforting anchor to reality. She nearly let her mouth open and said something, a confirmation, perhaps.

Before that could happen, Darkrai took control over her again; Twilmer could almost feel her sense of control being washed away with dark Pokémon's power. For a split second, the angry brown eyes of Twilmer's met with her surprised jade green ones and then she grabbed the woman's hand, at the same time unleashing a thunder attack.

ooo

End Part 38

I'm the evil cliffhanger type woman. Deal with it :3 I spoil you guys with two parts at once. Aren't I nice?


	39. Evolution of Love and Loss

Pokémon World Online

Part 39: Evolution of Love and Loss

Disclaimer: I don't own what I don't own. It belongs to those who DO own it :P Hope you'll enjoy this part and a big thanks to all who supported me throughout this PWO project. There's more to come

ooo

"Aura!" Twilmer yelled in her mind as Aura fell back, but the Darkrai was too strong for her. There was no way a Pichu could overcome the prince of darkness. In addition to that, she was so weak... so tired... She couldn't keep up these attacks or this time Arceus might not be able to help her. "Helium!" Twilmer finally managed to shout. All eyes in the room snapped to the little ball of fuzz. "Aur- Dr-" Twilmer managed before Darkrai gained a harsher control on her than he had had before.

"I don't know about you guys," Drix swung his sword lazily over his shoulder, "but I'm sick of this little puppet show."

"My thoughts exactly," Aura cracked her knuckles. She was hurt, but not disabilitatingly so from Twilmer's attack.

"A legendary Pokémon? You guys couldn't even manage to beat Dil back there," Darkrai spoke through Twilmer, who looked extremely ticked off at being controlled. She had regained her senses, but Darkrai had too much of a hold on her and he was using her to kill the ones she loved, and herself whom she also loved.

Meanwhile, Victoria stood, shaking her head. She turned and faced the Machamp who had attacked her. She gave him the middle claw and dodged a cross chop. She then came down on him with a shadow claw, knocking him out. She stood victoriously, brushing off her claws. She turned and saw Twilmer in trouble. "Wea!" she cursed. She walked nonchalantly over to Darkrai and gave him the middle claw as well.

This ticked off Darkrai to the point that Twilmer managed a bit of control as Darkrai's attention was shot. "THE EYES! AIM FOR THE FUCKING EYES!" Twilmer shouted before Darkrai regained control over her.

"Such language!" Helium looked appalled.

ooo

Emily23 raced down the hallway, closing in on the flashing green dot that marked Bunneary's position on her map. She hoped that Arcanine and Salamence were okay, but she didn't have much time to think about that as she neared the end of the hallway. She stopped as she saw Bunneary lying at the feet of an angry looking Lucario. "Who are you?" EMily23 asked.

"This is my partner Arthur. I am Shigeru Miyamoto. I was a long time friend of Satoshi's until he began to grow steadily aggressive and reclusive. Some said it was because of his Asperser's, but I know differently. He's just passionate to a fault. Oh my, look at me ramble. I believe this is yours." Shigeru motioned to Bunneary. Emily23 stood in awe, looking up at the video game giant.

"What are you doing here? Why did you help Bunneary?" She was full of questions.

"I am here because Satoshi sent out a distress signal. Turns out he's in distress due to his own idiocy. I check up on this game from time to time having helped in its development. I generally have Arthur here look around for me, but this time was different. I helped your Bunneary because it was hurt and was part of the team trying to take down Satoshi. She has been given healing potions and should wake up soon. There's not much more you need to know. I figured you would be along shortly and I would like you to deliver a message for me."

"What is it?" Emily23 asked as she picked up Bunneary.

"Do not read it. It is for Satoshi only. Say it is from me and he will take it without question and without harming you...at least until he receives it. I take my leave now. To you, Twilmer, and the others, you have my luck." Shigeru Miyamoto bowed deeply before logging out. Arthur was able to stay behind despite this and sped down the hallway out of sight.

Emily23 fingered the message and put it into her inventory so it wouldn't be so tempting. As she did so, Bunneary opened her eyes. "Bunn?" she asked groggily.

"You're awake!" Emily23 exclaimed, hugging the small bunny. As she did so, Bunneary began to glow. "Wha?" Emily23 watched as Bunneary evolved into Lopunny before her eyes.

"Lopunny?" Lopunny looked at her new form and smiled.

"You evolved! I am so proud of you!" Emily23 hugged her partner again. "Now we better hurry up. The others need our help." Lopunny nodded as the two headed for the stairs.

ooo

"I think a little extra help right now would be great," Drix smirked. Darkrai turned to look at him as did Aura and Helium. He smiled, sticking two of his fingers in his mouth and whistling. As soon as he did, Salamence burst in through the wall behind him, landing beside her partner. She roared at the legendary Pokémon, rearing up on her hind legs, using intimidate. Darkrai was stunned.

"Well well Drix of the underground and former top ten member, that was an impressive display. You've managed to destroy my office quite nicely." Satoshi stood from his chair, clapping.

"You think flattery will help?" Drix smirked as he looked up at Satoshi.

"I think a punishment shall be in order. Darkrai let me handle this young man." Darkrai backed off, still keeping a hold on Twilmer. "I think it's time to test how real Pokémon have really become," Satoshi said furiously, calling a Glalie and Froslass to his side.

"What are you going to do?" Drix asked confused.

"Blizzard!" Satoshi shouted. Everything seemed to move faster than normal as Drix was so shocked he didn't have time to react, nor did Salamence as the two blizzards hit her dead on. She fell over, frozen; HP completely depleted.

"What? No. There's no way two blizzards could do that. There's no way." Drix was at a loss for words.

"Surely you aren't stupid enough to not know by now that PWO Corp. has been hacking since the beginning." Satoshi sneered down at him.

Drix scowled as he kneeled next to his partner to use a healing item, but Salamence was too still. She did not breathe. She had no pulse. "She...you fucking killed her," he said in disbelief, his voice cracking. "You will pay for this." Drix clutched the healing item in his hand until it burst, splattering over the floor. With renewed strength and spurred onward by intense anger, he pulled his sword out as he moved to attack Satoshi, yelling every curse word he knew.

ooo

"This is turning into a workout," Emily23 panted as she leaned on the railing of the stairs. Lopunny looked just as tired as she was. She was now three flights up, only one away from Twilmer and the others...

She gasped as she came upon a body near the stairs. She wasn't sure who it was, but there was also the body of a Steelix wrapped around the area. She saw a man with a butter knife standing there looking very confused with a Butterfree fluttering around him. "Who are you?" Emily23 asked, confused.

"Me?" Guy slid the butter knife into a makeshift sheath on his belt, "I am a humble herbalist turned temporary warrior to help out Twilmer."

"You're here to help Twilmer too? Are you part of the underground?" she asked.

"Me? Part of the underground? Bah! I am part of the Brotherhood. Either way, I was sent her to help Twilmer out. Do you know where she is? I assume upstairs."

"Yeah, she went to Satoshi's office."

"I figured as much. Well, we may as well head up together. Two is more than one, they say." Guy and Emily23 ran up the stairs together, their partners behind them.

ooo

Darkrai still had power over Twilmer and she was doing all she could to keep from passing out. Victoria was hanging from the ceiling light once more, observing Salamence with a look of sorrow and confusion. "Arceus, are you there?" Twilmer wondered, but no answer came. She wondered if the god could breathe life back into Salamence. "I bet this is one of those 'prove yourself' things."

Darkrai was distracted by Drix and Satoshi. Perfect. "Victoria!" Twilmer shouted. Darkrai instantly snapped control back over her, but not before Twilmer could grin evilly. She was going to help and fight no matter what. The Weavile landed in front of her and smirked. It was game time.

Darkrai growled and created a black circle around Victoria. "Embargo!" Twilmer shouted in her mind. Embargo stopped the opposing Pokémon from using items, both held and inventory items. This was not good. This meant that Victoria's amethyst necklace was now rendered useless. Victoria fell down, clutching her knee in pain. The amethyst encrusted necklace Victoria wore was actually an item she had specially made. It had been blessed by Cresselia and it allowed Victoria to move as if she didn't have an injured leg. Twilmer had found the injured Sneasal a year and a half ago in the mountains, standing by her even though she was set to be deleted. A bond had formed between the two that day.

Darkrai surrounded it's self with dark energy, releasing a Dark pulse attack. If that hit Victoria, she was in trouble. Victoria jumped up with a slight wince of pain and countered the attack with a dark pulse of her own. She landed and let out a shout; her leg in pain. She fell to her knees, holding herself up by her fore claws, panting.

"This isn't good," Twilmer sighed, before she felt the control tighten on her. Darkrai was planning on using her to attack Victoria. "Oh no the fuck you don't!" Twilmer wasn't about to let that happen.

Twilmer retaliated as best she could, which was basically shouting "Get out of my head," over and over again. It worked to some extent as Darkrai was unable to penetrate Twilmer's mind due to the relentless and annoying chanting. Darkrai emitted an anguished snarl and prepared a dark pulse attack. Victoria prepared to dodge it, but she realized that she wasn't the target.

Twilmer's body burned with pain as the Dark pulse hit her dead on and at close range. Her body ached and she wanted to go to sleep, but she fought this urge, looking at Victoria with sad eyes. This situation was desperate.

Even if they managed to defeat Satoshi, they still had Dream to deal with, the top ten members who had not been dealt with, other gamers, legendary Pokémon, and the fact that this world was slowly becoming real. Things sounded impossible--or at least time consuming. Plus, how would they get out of the system once they had restored this world--if they ever did...

"I'll worry about that later," Twilmer fought through the dark thoughts; an aftermath of the dark pulse attack.

Victoria looked up at Twilmer. If Twilmer could survive an attack like that at close range and still be willing to fight, then she could deal with a damaged leg. Shakily, Victoria stood with a wince of pain. She shook her head and held up her claws with a concentrated determination.

"That's the Victoria I know," Twilmer smirked.

ooo

Drix was furious in a way that he had never been before. He swung at every Pokémon Satoshi managed to bring his way, KOing them instantly. "ENOUGH!" Satoshi shouted, snapping his fingers. Drix had been about to take care of a Machamp when suddenly his body felt very heavy. He fell to the ground unable to move. "Mewtwo, if you would be so kind," Satoshi motioned to Drix. Mewtwo grinned, cracking his knuckles, and then hit Drix with a barrage of psychic attacks. Drix was unable to scream as he slowly lost consciousness...

When Drix opened his eyes, he was floating in a dark area nearly like space. He saw a blue figure off in the distance. He ran--or rather floated--over to it. It was his Salamence. "Salamence!" he shouted, running towards her. He went to hug her, but fell right through her as if she were a ghost. "What's going on?" Drix asked, irritated.

"She's gone now," a voice like a wind chime announced behind Drix. He turned and saw Arceus, the legendary God and supposed glitch, standing next to Salamence.

"What do you mean? Where am I? Why are you here?"

"Are humans always asking questions?" Arceus sighed and shook his elegant head. "I have difficulty understanding humans and their ways, but your reckless behavior is putting you in harm's way. The soul of your partner was extremely worried about you. You passed out and thus I seized that opportunity." Arceus explained simply.

"Seized the opportunity? And can't you bring Salamence back? You were able to bring Twilmer back." Drix scowled up at the god.

"Twilmer had not actually died; Dream's projected image had merely destroyed the glitch inside of her. Or rather, Dream destroyed the glitch she had put inside of Twilmer. Unfortunately she is still plagued by the remnants."

"Oh," Drix looked at the ground sadly. He had thought that Salamence would be able to come back...

"Salamence wanted to give you what power she had as a Pokémon to help aid you and so you won't kill yourself when you get in another frenzy." The image of Salamence shifted and transformed into a pendant similar to the one Arceus had given Twilmer, only this one bore the image of a Salamence.

"Sweet, I got a kick ass transforming pendant just like Twilmer now!" Drix grinned.

"No, yours only increases your strength. It's not nearly as powerful as the one I made myself from the bits of glitched data within Twilmer. Yours is only about one fourth as strong," Arceus corrected.

"What? What a rip off! Satoshi was able to destroy Twilmer's and now mine is only one fourth as strong?"

"Easy, remember it is not the amount of strength a Pokémon...err man possess, but what he is able to do with those strengths."

"You sound like a fucking fortune cookie," Drix growled.

The god laughed heartily. "I may not have made contact with many humans, but I must say you are the most amusing. Anyways, use your gift wisely." Arceus disappeared and everything grew so light...

Drix opened his eyes and had regained feeling in his body. He growled and managed to stand up. Mewtwo tried to regain control back over his body, but Drix lunged forward and managed to cut one of Mewtwo's arms off. The Pokémon was not pleased in the slightest, his body becoming surrounded by red psychic energy. Drix noticed that his sword had become colored like a Salamence. The pendant was attached to the hilt. As Drix swung his sword forward again, flames surrounded his sword. He slashed through the barrier Mewtwo tried to bring up and brought it down on the Pokémon, who fell backwards dead.

"Thanks buddy. It looks like you're still with me," Drix panted sadly as he looked at the pendant on his sword.

ooo

Twilmer's ears pricked up as she heard a slight moan. She looked over to see Umbreon standing up, its energy returning. A few of the other Eeveelutions rose as well. The fact that their little sister had been forgotten allowed for a pleasing reunion as they nuzzled the little Eevee.

Twilmer smiled at this and felt Darkrai's control slip. "Yes, happy thoughts, happy thoughts," Twilmer thought hard and thought about Salamance coming back to life, about Helium gaining some confidence and getting over his fear of bees, about Emily23 cuddling a fuzzy Bunneary, about Trellaine and his oranges, about Elra finally losing to her, and about Aura...

These thoughts combined caused Darkrai's control to lessen, but he was not about to be bested. He swatted Victoria away as she tried to attack him and used Haze.

The haze caused Twilmer to lose her train of thought as the field was engulfed in darkness. Darkrai had created a small dark barrier. She heard Victoria's futile "Wea's" on the other side of the impenetrable darkness. Twilmer managed to escape from his grasp and landed in front of him. "About fucking time," Twilmer smirked.

Darkrai simply shook its head in amusement and gestured to her to 'bring it on.'

"Gladly," Twilmer felt rejuvenated, but was hit with a dark orb that surrounded her and blocked her from using her inventory items. "Damn Embargo attack," she growled. She was about to use a Tackle, when Darkrai began moving his arms methodically. Looking into them, Twilmer felt sleepy.

"No, a Dark void attack. He's the creator of all nightmares, so this...can't...be...go..." with that, Twilmer fell into a deep sleep as Darkrai drifted close to her, preparing to manipulate her dreams.

ooo

End Part 39

Not much to say...reviews are nice and definitely helpful.


	40. Remembering the End

Pokémon World Online

Part 40: Remembering the End

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. Holy Cheese Whiz, part 40! It's odd; I never imagined reaching part 40 when I started. I grew bored of the idea around part 16 and then...I don't know I just started writing again and now here we are. Thanks to all of you who have stuck with me this far and those who are new to Pokémon World Online. I hope I never let any of you down. I'm going to dedicate this part to Ferrous Lucario because his reviews have been extremely helpful to me. Thank you so much, mate. Also, this fic now has 100 reviews 3 love to all of you who have reviewed. I'm spoiling you with another part for that.

ooo

Twilmer found herself drifting off into a place she vaguely remembered due to shoving the memory aside. It was a fancy hotel surrounded by limousines and other fancy cars. "Holy shit!" Twilmer squeaked. She looked around and noticed that this is where the end of year prom had taken place. She had been a senior, though she was only 17 at the time due to having skipped a grade when young.

Inside she saw the ghostly images of dancing people. One of which she recognized as herself and Derek. They were having a good time at the moment. Twilmer's heart sank as she realized what was about to happen. She had no choice but to watch the scene unfold below her.

"Hey, Twila, why don't we go somewhere more private?" David asked her after they finished dancing to a slow song.

"Okay," Twila responded, completely oblivious to what was about to happen. They walked up a flight of stairs and went into one of the open rooms that was abandoned. Derek began kissing her, so she began kissing him back. This was nothing unusual.

"I love you," Derek whispered into her ear.

"I love you too," Twila sighed, holding onto the one she loved. He then began to unzip her dress, but she stopped him. "What the heck are you doing?" she asked, zipping her dress back up.

"Well, let's see. It's prom night. That answer enough for you?" Derek asked. He usually spoke harshly to Twila, but never in this matter.

"So?" Twila asked, slightly confused. Twilmer above cursed her innocence.

"I want to get some, damn it. I mean Christ, what kind of guy would I be to not get laid on prom night?"

"A noble one. You know I believe in waiting." Twila stood up confused. Derek pushed her down, getting on top of her and kissing her fiercely. She pushed him away, and he growled, grabbing at her and ripping the strap of her dress.

"I'm your true love, damn it. You said so yourself. What's the sense in waiting?" Derek glared at her, but she remained defiant. "Fuck you and fuck your morals," Derek yelled at her. She wept as he left the room. She then heard someone coming a few minutes later and, not wanting to be seen, she hid in the closet.

Twilmer knew what was coming, but it didn't stop her from feeling what she felt. Derek entered with her best friend at the time. The two then did what Twila had refused to do. She sat in the closet not daring to breathe as she listened to the sounds of love making outside the door.

Twilmer was sobbing as she watched from above. "You bastard," she meant to cuss at Darkrai; however, all that came out of her mouth was "Pichuchu pi!"

"PI! Pichu chu pi?" Twilmer felt more tears come to her eyes. What was going on? Why couldn't she talk?

Suddenly Twilmer saw two katanas slash through the ghostly scene as well as a flurry of powder settle on everything. Aura smiled as she sheathed her katanas. The vision faded and Twilmer saw Darkrai had been badly wounded. He growled and disappeared from the room in a puff of dark smoke. No way he was going to stick around and get his behind kicked.

Aura kneeled next to the crying rodent and patted her on the head. "Poor baby, shhh," Aura comforted. "It's gone now. Whatever it was that you saw is gone now." Twilmer looked up at Aura and was unable to control the flood of her emotions. She jumped into the swords woman's lap and sobbed helplessly.

"How...touching..." Drix raised an eyebrow as he deflected another barrage of Pokémon. This time he made sure not to kill them but knock them out. The room was becoming more and more cramped.

"Shut the fuck up Drix! Don't be so senseless," Aura glared at him.

"Well excuse me for being in a bad mood," he spat back. Aura's eyes widened as she looked over at Salamence's fallen body.

"I'm sorry. I guess I just forgot in the heat of battle," Aura looked away.

"Tch, you should be," Drix murmured as he got into a battle stance, ready for whatever may come his way next. Where on Earth was Satoshi getting all those Pokémon? Satoshi held up a finger and another Mewtwo appeared beside him.

"It's marvelous to have scientists to clone an army for you," he smirked.

"Pichu it. Damn it!" Twilmer found her voice slowly returning to her. Whatever had caused her to lose her voice was subsiding as Aura stroked the rich, yellow fur of her head. Twilmer sniffled and sighed deeply.

"It's alright Twil," Aura smiled down at the little rodent sitting on her lap. "Whatever he did to you, it's all over now."

Twilmer couldn't really tell if she was refering to Darkrai or, by any chance, she knew about her nightmares. Thinking about it for a second, she realized that was impossible.

"How... how did you beat him?" Twilmer rubbed her sore eyes as she waited for her emotions to calm down.

"Well, I had a little help." Aura smirked and Twilmer couldn't really tell why, at least until Victoria had lunged towards her from behind swordswoman's back and hugged the little Pichu. It almost squeezed all the air out of her lungs, but Twilmer didn't really care right then.

"Mewtwo, use psychic." Both Aura's and Twilmer's head turned around just in time to see the legendary Pokémon ready it's attack; directing it straight at the admin.

"Oh no you don't." Aura hissed, shifting her position just in time for the attack to hit her back, shielding the Pichu from damage.

Twilmer looked up in wide eyed wonder at Aura, who was gritting her teeth as she blocked the attack from the Mewtwo. Twilmer felt tears come to her eyes. "Damn emotions," she grumbled. She had not been able to defeat Darkrai on her own and now she was not able to protect her friend as Aura gritted her teeth, letting a small yelp escape from the pain that was searing her back. When the attack ended, Aura fell to the ground, breathing heavily. "Aura?" Twilmer asked cautiously.

"Protect the admin at all costs. It's what I agreed to do," Aura said then added after she saw Twilmer's look of displacement, "plus we're one big fucking family and I really don't want to see another dead Pokémon." Aura sighed, looking up at Drix and his Salamance.

"Arceus can..." Twilmer began before Drix interrupted.

"Arceus can't. He told me so himself," Drix didn't even look at her as he placed his sword on his shoulder.

Twilmer was taken aback. She had a problem with hero worship and she had unwittingly begun to hero-worship Arceus. Hearing he couldn't help struck her hard. Victoria walked over and placed a claw on Twilmer's shoulder comfortingly. Twilmer hugged her Pokémon then looked up at Mewtwo. "He's ours!" Twilmer shouted, stealing a glance at Aura as she stood up, her back in excruciating pain.

"No." Helium looked firmly at Twilmer. "He's mine." Helium ran forward, throwing powders at Mewtwo, Vileplume using Stun spore. Mewtwo created a barrier and the attacks rolled off harmlessly.

"No." The party turned to see another herbalist with a Butterfree enter the room, Emily23 and a Lopunny behind him. "He's ours." Guy nodded to Helium and together the two bombarded Mewtwo. Caesar used bug buzz which kept Mewtwo open for a dart from Guy as Helium healed the two of them with a healing potion he had concocted.

Drix aimed for the remaining Machamp as Twilmer pulled out a healing syrup to spread on Aura's back. Despite all this, Satoshi looked as if nothing bothered him. He watched calmly as his Pokémon team was destroyed one by one. Darkrai was dead and Mewtwo was being fought harshly. "Just what do you have up your sleeve?" Twilmer wondered as she electrocuted the Machamp and Victoria hit him with an avalanche attack.

"Wait, Satoshi!" Emily23 called. Everyone stopped fighting temporarily to look at the small tamer as she ran over to the creator of Pokémon World Online. "I have a message for you!"

"You dare try and approach me?" Satoshi growled, calling forth an Electvire. Lopunny ran forward and kicked the Pokémon as hard as she could before using ice beam.

Satoshi grinned, looking at the battle raging in front of him and began to laugh.

"What's so funny you bastard?" Drix asked, holding his sword out in front of him.

"Watching you mortals duke it out in front of me is quite hilarious. That glitch may have backfired, Dream might've ruined PWO by merging it with the real Pokémon world, or at least attempting to, but it's no matter. The god of all may be opposing me, but he has no true powers of his own. After all, he had to create two beings to control space and time and three beings to control emotion, free will, and knowledge to give to the people and Pokémon of their universe." With that said, Satoshi disappeared.

"What the fuck was that about?" Aura asked as all the Pokémon that they had been fighting looked around confused. Without Satoshi to control them, they left the building. The eeveelutions rejoiced at having found their little sister and barked a thanks to the party before departing.

"We are in your debt," Umbreon told Twilmer, who understood him.

"Well that was anticlimactic," Guy remarked as he put his powders away. The Mewtwo--without Satoshi there--teleported away. The rest of the Pokémon escaped as well, running down the stairs in a panic.

"This is not good," Twilmer's ears drooped.

"You bet it's not." Dream appeared, floating above their heads.

"Bitch, come down here and fight!" Drix shouted up at Dream.

"I've been waiting for someone to finally figure out that now that Pokémon are real, then Dialga and Palkia are real. They are responsible for taming the chaos and expanding the universe. Satoshi has gone insane with my help. Insane enough to attempt to create a new universe." With that, Dream disappeared as well.

"Bloody hell," Helium managed.

"So they went to the Dialga and Palkia event. Can't admins access that event?" Aura asked.

"Yes, but only if a level 99 player is present. The event is extremely difficult, so they made sure to have plenty of locks on it. We don't have a level 99 player, so either you or Drix reach level 99 fast, or we need the help of a top player." Twilmer looked up at the two.

"There's no chance of me raising another eight levels any time soon, especially without..." Drix trailed off as he turned to look at the body of his fallen partner.

"I'm so sorry. This is probably all my fault for getting all of you involved in such a mess." Twilmer looked down at her paws.

"No, I choose to come with you." Drix sheathed his sword as he turned away from Salamence's body, refusing to let the tears inside fall. He walked to the stairs. "No sense staying here. We better go help the Underground clean up what mess is left and then hurry to that event."

"I can't believe he got away. He had the ability to disappear this whole time. He was just waiting to tire us out and break us first," Twilmer hissed. "And since this world is becoming real, I can't even hack. Not that I could before..."

"Wait a second," Drix walked over to her from the stair case giving her a sly look. "You hacked?"

"I tried to hack into the event once, maybe. I couldn't get into it and thank the heavens PWO Corp never found out I tried. This world is becoming so real that I can't even hack anymore. Dream can't either which may be why she's so antsy and why she didn't do anything to us during the fight. She wasn't able to."

"No hacking?" Helium looked up at her.

"Yep, no hacking. I mean it might still be possible, but this place is becoming more realistic by the second so all the computer stuff is slowly eroding away. Hell if I know what that means for our characters." Twilmer shrugged.

"It means deep shit," Aura concluded simply, eyeing Drix. Twilmer saw this and mumbled something under her breath. "Say something?" Aura asked.

"No, nothing," a blushing Pichu responded. "ARGH! I hate being a Pichu! Why did he have to destroy my charm?" Twilmer grumped as Victoria stood beside her.

"And why did Satoshi have to fucking kill my Salamance?" Drix spat back.

"Touché," Twilmer was taken back a bit.

"Oh my gosh, Salamence!" Emily23 shouted, having spotted the body and heard Drix's statement. She put her hands to her mouth and sank to her knees.

"Old news," Drix grumbled.

"Salamence was a brave soul. She came to me when I needed help down below." Emily23 stood up with the help of Lopunny.

"She came to you? You mean it's your fault she was here and your fault that she had to endure this and..." Drix trailed off, storming away to the stairs.

"What'd I do?" Emily23 looked stunned.

"Drix needs someone to blame, unfortunately, he picked you, kiddo. I'd steer clear of him if I were you." Aura sighed, following Drix down the stairs. As they all began making their way, the building began to shake once more. "Oh shit, all the battling must have really weakened the foundations!"

"Run!" Twilmer ordered, though the order wasn't needed as everyone had already started to rush down the stairs.

"Why does stuff like this always happen to us?" Emily23 whined as she and her Lopunny tried to keep up with the rest.

"I sense you guys might need my help," Trellaine spoke as he materialized beside them as they came to a landing.

"That might be nice. I thought you were going to be waiting for us elsewhere," Guy looked up at him, raising an eyebrow.

"Tosh, if you don't want my help."

"Trellaine, we really need your help," Twilmer begged, which was extremely rare for her.

"Since you put it that way, everyone grab onto my cloak." The party obeyed as Trellaine pulled out a warp stone and teleported them to the front of the building. Maple jumped back as they landed only a few meters from him. Sho looked up at them with eyes full of sorrow. Neither of the Kirlia with her. Ziac didn't even look up from where he sat, messing with a stone on the ground. Midget looked rather green as he surveyed how few of the Underground had made it out alive. Max and Arcanine were with them. Emily23 ran up to Max and hugged him, happy to see the Slowbro.

"We've lost so many," Maple sighed, watching as the building slowly began to fall.

"I know, man. I know," Drix swallowed against the lump forming in his throat. As the building fell, all he could imagine was Salamence's body falling with it.

"The Underground is pretty much finished now. I mean, we don't have a leader anymore," Midget sighed.

"Well, the mood sure is dreary here," Trellaine commented as he pulled out an orange and began peeling it. Haunter floated lazily beside him. "Say Twilmer, where's that pendant of yours?" Trellaine asked, pointing at the Pichu. "You look shorter than I last remember."

"Satoshi destroyed it," Twilmer growled.

"Did he now?" Trellaine placed a slice of orange in his mouth as he pulled out half of Twilmer's pendant from his sleeve.

"How did you?"

"A good magician never reveals his secrets." Trellaine winked. He held it and mumbled a few incantations. The pendant then looked as good as new. "I must warn you, it is no where near as strong as it used to be. It will probably only be able to keep you as a human for a few hours and I would only use it in emergencies in case it breaks. It should be good for one use a day, but one can never be too careful." Trellaine tossed the pendant to Twilmer, who caught it and put it around her neck. She could have kissed Trellaine she was so happy to have some way of returning to her human form only if it were for a small amount of time.

"About that 99 level top member" Aura cleared her throat suddenly, "I think I might know the right person." Aura narrowed her thin eyebrows, thinking of the possibilities. Twilmer's head snapped back from Trellaine to the swordswoman. "But I'm not sure he will agree. We kind of... don't click."

"Who is it?" Seemed that both the admin and mage wanted to ask the same question and both voiced it at the same time.

"Zero."

"Him?" Drix snorted, finding the idea quite ridiculous. "There's no way he will agree to work with us unless there's some profit in it for him."

"You said you don't 'click'" Emily23 didn't pay attention to swordsman's comment, still hurt from his earlier outburst. "How come?"

"We just don't." Aura shrugged. "Even though he was the only one from Top who tried to convince me to stay in PWO after I tried to quit. I think we've both been here since the initial game release." She thought about the man for a second. "Of course, that might have something to do with the fact I slapped him when we last saw each other."

"Slapped?" Twilmer asked. She looked at Aura's soft, smooth, nicely shaped hands and knew that their slapping power was greater than possibly the bitch slap of a Jynx. "Oh, I don't feel so good," Twilmer held her head, the electricity sickness finally hitting her. She fell over and everything grew dark.

ooo

End Part 40

Not much left to go until the end. We're more than halfway through this story. Thinking of the ending is making me sad, so I will only think of the things left to come. Next part will pretty much be a guest part as Moyachan has written most of it. Seriously, go look her up. She's super special awesome ;3


	41. A Reprieve of Love

Pokémon World Online

Part 41: A Reprieve of Love

Disclaimer: I really don't own anything in this part. It's pretty much written by Moyachan with many edits from myself (grammar and continuity) because I absolutely SUCK at romance, plush she wrote this for the RPG this is based off of at the forum we go to. Everyone give her a hand. Seriously, this woman is great. She's nice, considerate, fun to talk to, knows how to cheer a girl up, beautiful, hard working, brick is thrown at Lonepichu achem, yes, go shower her with love now. Lord knows she deserves it. Pokémon World Online concept belongs to me :3

ooo

"Woah!" Guy, who was standing closest to Twilmer, managed to grab her in half as she was falling. "I do appreciate when women fall into my arms, but..."

Emily23 rushed to their former admins side, quickly checking her pulse and some vital signs. The tamer sighed in relief, "She's fine. A little too tired to stand on her own, I guess."

"Aren't we all?" Aura winced, as her back protested in pain from Mewtwo's psychic attack.

Indeed, they all looked roughed up, for the lack of better word. It seemed to be quite a normal situation for them the last few days, as one battle after another came their way. Really, it was quite disturbing. Their first fight at PWO corp., then their most recent ambush at PWO Corp., Ho-Oh's berserk state, Dream's little play with their nightmares (Aura suppressed a shiver at the memory) and now this. Even though each fight was harder and left them more hurt then the previous one, there was one positive side in this all. Aura couldn't say she was bored, not even for a minute. There was hardly a dull moment since they'd began their journey with Twilmer.

"We should probably find a place to make camp," Helium sighed, taking Twilmer from Guy and cradling her carefully.

"I suggest anywhere but the city. It's already in an uproar due to many things and I'm sure a couple on in game convicts showing up won't help matters much." Guy suggested.

"Agreed. Perhaps somewhere in the woods nearby. It may be more uncomfortable and cold than a city hotel, but it's much safer." Trellaine nodded. The crew trooped away.

Drix looked back at the remaining Underground members and followed. "Serena ordered me to stick by Twilmer and that is what I'm going to do." Maple looked up at his long time friend and nodded. The party walked into the woods, setting up in the first suitable place they found. The evening was chilly and moon basked everything in a pale light. Drix used his sword's flame to make a fire. Helium took off his robe and created a small nest to set Twilmer in near the fire. She slept peacefully under the watchful eyes of Helium, Emily23, and their partners as well as Victoria.

Aura settled herself on the opposite side of campfire, typing a short message to Grim, one of her many contacts, asking him to send more healing items her way. Or, quite preferably, a huge stock of them. She knew the man was probably offline by now, but if he got the mail next day then they would all be nicely healed with the potions by morning. She wondered why she even bothered to buy such a ridiculous amount for the whole group. It was not like money grew on trees. Thinking about the probably pathetic amount of money she still owned, Aura scowled nastily. She may love her party, but she was still a greedy item collector at heart.

Sparia curled by her side and the swordswoman stroked the blue feathers on her head absentmindedly as she typed her letter. Only after a while she finally sighed and raised her eyes from her electric notepad. "What?"

Emily23 looked startled by the fact that the woman had noticed her staring.

"N-Nothing!" She stammered, looking back at the fire. "I was just thinking about how well Sparia is tamed. She really is experienced in battle."

Aura looked at her sleeping partner quixotically, as if she had seen the Empoleon for the first time. "We've been together since she was a chick. We've fought a lot of battles together." The swordswoman smiled, as she ruffled the soft feathers. "I can't imagine going through this game without her."

At her words, Emily23's shoulders sagged a bit and she turned her eyes to the fire. "And Drix will have to go through it now without his Salamence." The tamer whispered in small voice. "I wonder what he's thinking now." She cast a cautious glance at the man, who sat by the edge of the woods nearby. "He must be hurting, knowing that since PWO has become real, he can't resurrect Salamence."

"Stop putting the blame on yourself," Aura snorted angrily, shutting her notepad closed with loud snap without waking the Empoleon curled by her side. "The fact is that Drix had to unleash his anger on someone and you were just in his way." She looked towards the swordsman as well. "He can be a jerk sometimes, but that bastard really loved his dragon."

"Still, blaming others is not a cool thing." Helium butted into the conversation. Aura and Emily23 both looked at him, as if surprised he was even listening.

"No." The raven-haired woman rubbed the back of her neck sleepily while yawning. "It was not. If your Vileplume had gotten killed today, what would you have done?"

"..." Helium didn't really know how to answer that particular question.

"Because if it was Sparia who fallen today," Aura once again cast a look at the sleeping Empoleon, "I think I would have spared myself words and just slashed anyone who came my way, no matter friend or foe."

Both of the teenagers gave her a startled look.

"You can't be serious." Emily23 mused, but then fell silent under Aura's harsh gaze. Well, the woman was certainly capable of going berserk if something ticked her off. Emily23 silently hoped Aura's anger would never be unleashed upon her.

Sighing in silent defeat as she looked over at Drix, Aura raised herself from her seat, waking up Sparia in the process. The sleepy Pokémon looked up at her. "It's ok, stay here. I'm not sure he will appreciate your presence right now." Her partner merely blinked in response, before curling up again on the warmed grass where Aura had been sitting just a second before.

A stroll to the woods edge took her less then minute. She came to the side of the swordsman who had been sitting with his back leaning against the trunk of a tree with his eyes closed. She leaned slightly against the same trunk, waiting for him to look up at her. He didn't. Aura knew he wasn't asleep. After few more moments had passed, she nudged him lightly on the hip with the tip of her boot, hoping that would get his attention or at least anger him enough to acknowledge her presence. It didn't. Waiting a few seconds more, Aura nearly heard her own patience snap and she resigned from the gentle nudging for the sake of a strong kick. His head whipped around. Ah! A reaction at last.

"The fuck are you doing?" Drix snarled angrily while looking up at her, hand automatically massaging at the sore spot.

"Getting you up. Fight me!" She flicked a finger at her katanas' handles and the metal chimed gracefully.

"Now? You must be out of your mind," He snarled again, resting his head against the cool bark once more.

"Yes. Right here, right now. Catch." She threw a bottle of swirly potion into his lap. "I've got one too. That way we will both be at our full HP. These are my last until morning, so better appreciate it."

"What give you the idea that I'll want to fight right now?" The man held the potion, but refused to drink it.

"Because you're making yourself miserable. As you once said to me, in this state it's not even fun to kill you. So drink that fucking potion and fight me. I'm not going to repeat my offer again."

She uncorked her own bottle, taking a few long sips until her hit points turned to, more or less, their maxed state. She saved half of it for later; after they' were done with their fight.

"Fine." Drix opened his potion as well. "Just don't be sorry when I beat your ass."

"Che." Aura frowned and tossed her half empty potion bottle into her inventory. Then, before Drix could say a word, she unlocked the safety lock on her katanas and both blades were flung forcefully in the direction of Drix's head. He rolled to the side, dodging with a loud curse. Both blades struck the birch wood, cutting deep. Aura snatched them back with no effort, observing Drix as readied his sword.

"Sneaky little bitch." He smirked, but Aura snarled.

"That's what you get for lounging around unprotected, you asshole."

She ducked under another tree as the attack came; it seemed that the woods would be quite a hard place to fight in, but neither of them cared. By all means, this would make things more interesting with the amount of trees they could easily use as shelters for incoming attacks...and it would make the 'hunt' longer...

Aura could hear him near her; in fact, she barely had time to drop down to the ground as another attack came, piercing trough the tree she had been hiding behind. Using that as a perfect opportunity she spun around the tree, slashing her katanas down, but he had picked up his own sword quickly, blocking her attack. For a moment they sparred like this, one trying to overwhelm the other. It left the muscles in Aura's arms strained, slowly pulsing with liquid fire. She jumped back and smirked tauntingly, hiding behind another tree.

"Playing hide and seek won't help you," Drix snarled as he listened for the sound of his opponent's ragged breath.

"Not playing." A voice behind him sounded pleased and he turned around quickly. He paried her blow, but one of the katanas slid on the edge of his own sword and slashed at his right side. Cussing angrily, Drix dodged another blow and jumped back.

"You're worse than ever." Aura sounded dead serious. "Fight me like you mean it or don't insult me, you bastard."

These words seemed to sober Drix up a bit. "The fuck do you mean?"

"You've been moping too much. Either you fight me with all of your strength or drop that toy sword of yours right now."

"Toy?!" Drix frowned angrily, the grip on the handle of his sword tightening. "You don't know a thing, so stop trying to patronize me for fuck's sake!"

"If you don't intend to use it the way you always do," Aura circled her opponent slowly, her twin katanas swinging lightly with her steps, "then right now that sword in your hands is nothing more than a toy you can only poke your own eye out with."

"You want serious? I'll give you fucking serious!" Drix gritted his teeth, lunging forward. Aura parried the first blow, dodged the other, but when she twirled around to avoid the other one, Drix had suddenly shifted his moves and attacked from the other side, his sword cutting through her vest and slashing her side. She hissed and pushed back, intending to swing the blades at his arm, but his movement was faster and soon she sported quite a nasty cut on her thigh.

"That's more like it." Aura sneered while wiping sweat from her eyebrows. "We're not fighting to KO, unfortunately, but I'm betting my last vial of Moltres's fire elixir that you won't disarm me in next five minutes."

He didn't reply; he simply attacked again. Aura ducked behind an oak tree, but instead of showing up on the other side, she crouched; striking her blades trough the next piece of flesh she could see. Both of the katanas pierced through his jeans and into his calf. Drix let out a yell, more angry and surprised then pained. She quickly snatched her swords back, rolling away from the blade that almost fell on her shoulder. Her HP was at half and even though she didn't bother to look at the party menu to see how much her opponent had left, she knew Drix's would be around the same as her own.

"I could use Raging Dragon," Aura wondered silently as she observed the movement of the other swordsman, "But that will eat up one fourth of my own HP, so that's not really an option here." She scowled. Losing half of the hit points she still had for the sake of one attack was too careless since they couldn't KO each other. Drix attacked first and without thinking, she lunged at him with an attack of her own. Blades clashed together once, twice, and then a dead silence surrounded them.

At first there was no sound, then slowly, almost as if time ha frozen, Aura staggered back, the blade of Drix's sword sliding out of her stomach.

"Damn it." She winced, hand holding the wound as virtual blood poured out. "Damn it to hell."

Drix wanted to say something, but double blades scissoring his chest made speaking more than a little difficult. Only when she slid them out he let out a pained grunt.

Aura sat on the ground forcefully, supporting her back on a nearby oak. Drix stumbled to ground as well.

"Fuck you." She gasped as she fished out her half-used potion bottle and drank it quickly, the other swordsman following her example. "We can't have a fucking tie AGAIN!"

It almost pained him to laugh, but he did so either way. "Face it, you just can't beat me."

"Like you can?!" She furiously raised herself on her knees, the wound on her belly cured with the healing potion and she flung her fist at his arm quite forcefully. "You would have never even scratched me if I hadn't provoked you, you pathetic bastard!"

He grabbed her thrashing arms by her wrists, squeezing at the thin joints with so much force they could snap under his fingers. From the look on his face Aura knew he was at least as furious as she was, if not more. "It's not my fault that you are too weak to beat me. And no, I would have beaten you without your stupid provocation!"

"As if!" She laughed in his face with loud and a bit maniacal laughter. "You were too damn busy moping after Salamence's loss to take the fight seriously."

"The fuck do you know?!" Drix shifted his weight forcefully so she was no longer attacking him but pushed away so her back was flung at the oak trunk again, wheezing as all air was forced from her lungs for a second. "I don't see your partner lying around dead!"

"Salamence gave her life for the cause of a fight; you seem to forget that!" She tried to struggle and shake him off, but her hands already turned white as his fingers still held her wrists in a vice grip. "You should be proud of her, but instead you see only your own hurt!"

"Shut up." He growled, voice dangerously low.

"Are you angry?" She mocked, smirk tugging at her lips.

"YES!"

"Good!" She wrestled her now sore wrists from his hold as he half-released them in surprise. "Because that is better than seeing you lifeless!" He sat back on his heels, moving away from her and for a moment Aura couldn't read his expression at all. "Hold on to that anger." She whispered, rubbing the reddened skin of her wrists. "But don't unleash it at Emil23, who did nothing to you or Salamence. Direct it at Dream and Satoshi because she is a reason why Salamence can't be resurrected and he was the one who killed him. Neither of us had anything to do with it."

There was a moment of long silence interrupted only by the sounds of nocturnal Pokémon moving stealthily through the forest, using the shield of darkness to hunt for prey. Aura still leaned on the oak trunk and shifted her eyes to the patches of the star-filled sky she could see trough the tree tops. Drix, half kneeling, half sitting, held onto the pendant he had received from Arceus and stared blankly at the ground. Neither of them spoke for quite some time.

"I don't think I could have another partner. At least not now; not until all of this gets sorted out." Drix finally spoke, his hand still clasped tightly on the pendant.

"Then don't." Aura shifted her eyes back from the sky to the swordsman in front of her. "As long as you don't treat that as a self-punishment. Salamence was a wise Pokémon; I'm pretty much sure she wouldn't have wanted you to go around PWO alone."

He didn't reply.

"It's going to all work out, somehow."

"You sound awfully sure." Drix smirked in an attempt to summon back his usual, taunting expression. It didn't work out very well, but Aura chose to ignore it.

"Well, I am. You can't possibly tell me our little party is not an ass-kicking one." She laughed again, feeling the tiredness and strain from the fight finally leaving her.

"So... who won?" Drix snorted at her surprised and angered expression. "The bet, I mean."

"Che." She ran her fingers through her raven-colored hair. "Neither of us managed to disarm the other, so we have yet another tie."

"Not fair. What about my reward?" The swordsman laughed again; somehow the feeling of anger vanished from a few moments ago.

"You want a reward?" Aura raised her thin eyebrows quite high. "For a tie?"

"You bet I do." He smirked again.

"Fine." Aura rolled her eyes theatrically, and then pushed away from the tree trunk. Leaning in and winding her less bruised arm around his neck, she closed the distance between them with a kiss.

ooo

End Part 41

Again, I only edited and changed bits for continuity. The full credit for this part goes to Moyachan. Hmm, Aurix supporters, hope you enjoyed this part.


	42. The Last Night

Pokémon World Online

Part 42: The Last Night

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. And to answer a question raised by some of you, Aura is bisexual. She had a girlfriend in the past and now she likes a guy. Alright, that should do it. Reviews help me write faster...and so does boredom XD

ooo

Emily23 looked into the dancing flames of the fire while petting Lopunny methodically. So much had happened in such a short amount of time. Satoshi had simply been looking to wound their party and all who helped them. Accomplishing this task, he had fled. The Underground was now nearly nonexistent, Drix was severely depressed and blaming her for things she was not in control of, and Twilmer was sick. "I wonder what that letter said," she remarked to no one in particular as she opened her inventory and pulled out the message from Shigeru Miyamoto. She was tempted to open it, but he had said not to. She placed it back into her inventory. "Next time we meet, I'll give it to him," she concluded as she tried to make herself comfortable beside the fire.

"So, should we bring the entire brotherhood into this?" Trellaine asked Guy as he peeled himself yet another orange.

"Not for this. Serge is busy elsewhere and I'm not sure that little traitor would be interested in this mission," Guy said as he leaned on a nearby log. Caesar had fallen asleep perched on a nearby tree. "Bah, can't I just log out?"

"Not possible anymore. Besides, we can't have you out there lolly gagging when there might be trouble in here. Here, have an orange." He tossed the orange fruit at Guy, who caught it, examining the peel.

"I never much liked being in a party," he remarked to no one in particular as he pulled out the butter knife and used it to peel the orange. For the moment, the butter knife was harmless. "And you are too nice for your own good, repairing Twilmer's pendant thing--whatever it is. I know you and that took more magic than you'd admit. Unless you hacked."

"Hacking is impossible since most of the coding is gone from this world. I am too nice for my own good." Trellaine shrugged. "Besides, it's gone too far now. Satoshi could pull several innocent by standers with him when he falls. It will be up to us to stop that from happening even if that means--"

"Even if that means sacrificing ourselves," Guy finished, tossing the orange away not hungry anymore. "Remind me again why I joined the brotherhood." Trellaine smiled as the two tried to get comfortable and get some sleep.

Max had already fallen asleep and Emily23 looked over at him worriedly. Max was rather slow. He had power, but he was technically still a wild Pokémon despite being with them since the beginning. The job of a tamer was to tame Pokémon and find them good partners. So far she hadn't done that. Max wouldn't be able to develop to his full potential if he didn't have a partner. With a heavy heart, she decided that if at all possible, she would try and find a partner for Max. She rose, careful not to wake Lopunny, and Max followed her, as she thought he would. The two of them walked for awhile. She had seen a lake on her map and was heading there. She stopped on the shoreline and sat on a rock. Max merely entered the water and began munching on sea weed.

"Do you like that?" she asked with a laugh. Max looked up at her, and then continued munching on the seaweed. "I wish we could go into town without a hoard of gamers trying to kill us; I could really use an outfit change," she sighed, twisting a strand of blonde hair around her finger. She was still wearing the Bunneary outfit when her partner was now a Lopunny. "Max, tonight is the last night you are going to be with me if I can help it. I've failed as a tamer by not finding you a partner. Our mission has become very dangerous and I don't want to see you get hurt." Max munched on his seaweed while looking at her stupidly.

"Slowbro," he yawned, climbing out of the water.

"You're such a strong Pokémon; there's bound to be someone who-" Emily23 couldn't continue as she became choked with tears. She placed her head in her arms and sobbed. Max yawned.

ooo

Twilmer stirred and lifted her head, looking up at Helium who was sitting protectively by her side. She noticed she was wrapped in his pink robe and smiled. Helium looked down at her tenderly. "You're awake," he said in relief.

"Yeah," Twilmer said weakly, turning to look at the others.

"You need some vitamin C," Trellaine tossed her an orange.

"I thought you were asleep," Helium looked up, confused.

"I've always been somewhat of a night owl," Trellaine chuckled.

"Maybe if you guys would stop talking, we could all get some sleep," Guy complained, sitting up.

"Who are you, anyways? And why did Trellaine come back?" Twilmer asked confused. The long sleep she had didn't help either.

"I am Dr. W. D. Guy and I'm a top ranking herbalist. I am one of the brotherhood, along with this nut here," Guy pointed at Trellaine, "and he asked me to wait for you outside and accompany you, but I decided to go ahead and rush inside after I saw a small explosion coming from near the top floor and it's a good thing I did. I handled Dil for you."

"You killed Dil?" Twilmer looked at him in surprise.

"To be honest, I don't think I did. He disappeared when I dealt the final blow," Guy shook his head. A chill seemed to fall over the group.

"So we didn't accomplish a damn thing," Twilmer growled.

"Incorrect," Trellaine held up a finger. "Not only did you take down quite a large sum of the top ten and Satoshi's seven, you also took care of all of his Pokémon allies and you managed to destroy his strong hold. True he may still be at large, but you've dealt him a nasty blow that he won't be able to recover from."

Twilmer picked at the orange she had and thought that over while Helium asked, "What's the brotherhood?"

"Ahh, a fine question indeed. Do you want to take this one, Guy?" Trellaine asked, looking over at his comrade.

"No. I'm too tired for long explanations right now. Besides, it was your idea." Guy lay back down and placed an arm over his eyes to block out the light from the camp fire.

"There's nothing to it. A few of us met on a forum and we loved to RP on it. We decided we were like brothers and became the RP brotherhood. The name simply stayed with us when we started playing this game," Trellaine explained simply, leaning back against a rock.

"What?" Guy looked at him incredulously, "I've seen you talk gamers ears off for hours about the story of the formation of the brotherhood and you have just a few sentences for Twilmer and Helium?"

"She's in no condition to listen to a long story. Helium, on the other hand, will get the full story in due time," Trellaine grinned as Helium looked suddenly sick.

"I'd be fine if it weren't for this electricity sickness. I must have used a lot for it to be hitting me this badly," Twilmer said, sounding very nauseous.

"You used more electricity than any Pichu should ever have to use. Darkrai didn't help matters any." Helium looked sadly down at Twilmer.

"Use the pendant and transform back into a human. You'll still be sick, but not nearly as much," Trellaine suggested with a shrug.

"But you said not to use my charm except in emergencies," Twilmer looked at him, raising an accusing eyebrow.

"And is this not an emergency?" Trellaine looked over at her. "I said that so you wouldn't use it all the time. You can use it. I'd suggest you use it now to get some temporary relief from that electricity sickness. In fact, it may help ease it away." Trellaine watched Twilmer as she shrugged and turned the pendant. She transformed from the Pichu into her human form perfectly. "Ahh, my magic appears to have--"

"AHHH!" Twilmer screamed as she turned and noticed that she still had a Pichu tail.

"Well, the transformation isn't one hundred percent, but it's better than nothing. We'll have to see how much of a Pichu you still are later. So, do you feel better?" Trellaine asked.

"Actually, I do. I'm just," Twilmer yawned, "really tired." Helium picked his robe off the ground and draped it over the two of them like a blanket as Twilmer scooted closer to him, leaning her head on his shoulder. "Don't take this as a nice couple moment or anything, I'm just tired and your shoulder looks comfy," she warned.

"Of course," Helium smiled, getting comfortable himself.

"Guy, I think we should go sleep over there," Trellaine pointed with his magic staff.

"Why? I finally got comfortable again," Guy grumbled.

"To give our two love birds some alone time. Speaking of love birds, where have Aura and Drix gotten off to?" Trellaine asked as he and a very miffed Guy walked to a nice area a little further away.

"I'm glad you're okay," Helium said softly to Twilmer, a slight blush crossing her pale cheeks.

"No lovey moments!" She scolded, then sighed and scooted closer, eyes closed. "You didn't get to see much action back there, but that's for the better I guess. After seeing what happened to Xate...I'd just hate having to see you go through the same thing."

Helium placed a protective arm around her shoulders. Twilmer would normally shake it off and scold him, but she was far too tired and still a little bit ill. Twilmer's breathing steadied as she fell asleep. "Thank you, Twilmer, for everything. I don't know where I'd be without you." Helium smiled as he drifted off to sleep himself.

ooo

Guy lay on a slightly sloped patch of grass, awake, as he was unable to recapture sleep after his forced move, and staring at the stars above. His partner, Caesar, was again perched on his head, fast asleep. 'Normally I'd be logged off right now. Normally I wouldn't even see this. They look just like the real thing. I know they're graphics... but they're turning real. Everything about this world is turning real.' He rolled his eyes further upwards, looking at the Butterfree on his head. That too was becoming real. 'No,' he corrected himself 'he already is, isn't he?'

He shifted slightly to adjust his arms and winced as something poked his side. Reaching under his robes he pulled out the Butter knife, on which he'd been lying. The thing had turned from a useless blunt metal stick into a razor-sharp sword in a matter of nanoseconds. And it could even expand and retract at will to get just the right weapon for any situation. For some reason his movements when holding it in battle seemed to be automated, and just its touch made his fingers tingle. 'Just what are you...?' He thought as he eyed the thing. For a second he thought he saw it flash with a faint purple or lavender hue. That wasn't exactly a color affiliated with divine weaponry...

Sighing as he shook that thought off, Guy closed his eyes and decided to try and get some sleep. It was a long time coming.

ooo

"Look at them, Nightmare," Dream said to her Misdreavous as she watched the group from the shadows, "they are unaware of the danger they face. Satoshi will knock off Twilmer for sure and I so wanted to do it myse-" Dream stopped as she looked over and saw Guy. She noticed everyone in the vicinity had fallen into a peaceful slumber.

Dream walked softly over to Guy and peered down at him. It was the young man who had set her on her mission. He had told her to dedicate her life to making others' dreams come true and so she had done until the day her dream was stolen away. She looked over to Twilmer. "She is no longer an admin," Dream remarked to no one in particular. Nightmare danced over Trellaine, his face contorting as nightmares began to invade his sleep. Dream did nothing to stop her partner as she looked down at Guy.

"I will follow them by shadow." She snapped her fingers and Nightmare stopped her fiendish dance and floated away from Trellaine, his face becoming peaceful once again, though his brow shone with sweat. "I must figure out why he is here." The sound of a snapping twig scared Dream as she ran back into the woods, unable to hack at all anymore. The Pokémon world and the online Pokémon world were almost done merging. "If Twilmer does not stop Satoshi with his foolish Dialga and Palkia plans before the two worlds completely merge, then terrible things will happen."

Emily23 stepped into the clearing, Max following her. "Hello? Looks like everyone already went to bed. We may as well do the same." She returned to her spot beside Lopunny and curled up. Max laid down beside her. The two were soon fast asleep.

ooo

Aura and Drix walked back from the forest sheepishly, not saying much to each other, though words were not necessary. "Emily23 is asleep," Aura noted, seeing the tamer curled up between the two Pokémon she loved so dearly.

"Should I wake her to apologize? Man this is so unlike me," Drix chuckled.

"Nah, let her sleep. You can apologize in the morning." Aura smiled and turned, but not before Drix caught her and they shared a good night kiss. Drix used a log as a Pillow and Aura settled herself beside Sparia. Aura pulled out her PWO mail and opened her list of contacts. She selected Zero's name and began to type furiously into the night.

ooo

End Part 42

Hope you liked it and hope everyone had a good Christmas.


	43. Grim Prospects

Pokémon World Online

Part 43: Grim Prospects

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual and I don't own Grim. He belongs to Moya.

ooo

Twilmer opened her eyes as she yawned; stirring from her peaceful night's slumber...only something wasn't right. A dark fabric seemed to ensnare Twilmer. She struggled as hard as she could to no avail. "Help! Hey! Help!" Twilmer shouted becoming more and more panicked.

"Uhh," Helium blinked as he watched Twilmer struggle under his robe. He lifted it up and Twilmer tumbled out.

"Thank god, you saved my life, Helium," Twilmer smiled. "Wait, when did you get so big? Oh no! That shroud must have been a hacked item! It's shrunken me!"

"Twilmer, that was my robe," Helium blinked, confused.

"I know the problem here," Trellaine yawned as he walked over to the two. "She hasn't realized that--"

"I'M A PICHU!" Twilmer shouted.

"--that she's a Pichu," Trellaine finished.

"Why the HELL am I a Pichu again?" Twilmer asked, tapping her little foot impatiently.

"I forgot to mention since this charm is only half and only half as powerful, since you are too lazy to fix it at my tower, that there are time restraints," Trellaine explained.

"Meaning?" Twilmer asked with anger rising.

"You can't stay in your true form twenty four hours a day and seven days a week. It won't let you stay as a human for as long as you would like," Trellaine explained. Twilmer slumped over looking quite depressed. "Cheer up and have an orange," Trellaine tossed her one.

"May as well make do with what I have," Twilmer sighed, using her tiny rodent teeth to bite the peel off.

"Can't a guy get any shut eye around here?" Drix groaned as he sat up, awakened by the commotion. Caesar fluttered his wings in annoyance, but went back to sleep on Guy's head, which he was using as a perch. Guy was still snoozing peacefully. Twilmer scowled up at him over her orange. "Rather moody this morning, aren't we?" he asked, stretching so that a popping noise could be heard from his back.

"Drix, shut up or I'll make you shut up," Twilmer growled, sparks coming from her cheeks.

"Yeah, yeah, do whatever you want," Drix said, yawning. "Now what's for breakfast? Wait, let me guess, oranges."

"Look, if you want to jump into my bag and find something else from the fruit vendor's warehouse I steal from, go right ahead." He held his bag open, "no takers? Then have an orange." He pulled one out and tossed it to Drix. He placed a thoughtful hand to his chin as he looked at the Salamence pendant attached to Drix's large sword. "You know, you're pendant could be at full power once again if you absorbed all the power from Drix's." Everyone looked at him.

Twilmer looked at Drix and knew she could not and would never ask to drain the power out of his amulet. It just wouldn't be right. Drix seemed to tense at this suggestion, but Twilmer waved it off. "I'm not that much of a bitch," she smirked.

The scent of oranges seemed to have stirred some of the other party members. Emily23 woke up, rubbing her eyes. Lopunny woke up as well. Max, however, was still snoozing. "Good morning, everyone," she said with a yawn. "So where are we off to today?" she asked eagerly, hoping they would pass near a town. Trellaine handed her an orange as she went to stand with the rest of the party. Victoria had taken to eating the peels, though grudgingly. She hungered for a fresh egg stolen from a nest. She was then surprised by the fact that she could feel hunger as she never had been able to before.

"Drix and Aura knew someone who might be able to get us into the Dialga and Palkia event, right?" Twilmer looked up at the swordsman.

"Oh yeah," he commented idly, nibbling on his orange. "Anyways, don't ask me about that bastard; Aura is the one who knows more about him than I do." Drix spat an orange seed onto the ground.

"You don't seem to like him; what happened?" Helium asked.

"Nothing really. I just met him enough to know he hates me as much as I hate him," Drix said nonchalantly.

"Why does he hate you?" Helium asked.

Drix nodded towards Aura, "My guess is that he had a crush on her, and hates me because she dropped out of the top 10 and then started hanging out with me more." Drix shrugged.

"That sounds like a stupid soap opera." Twilmer crossed her little arms.

"Yeah, well, with all that happens with the higher level gamers, you could probably write a soap opera," Drix smirked.

"Why is that?"

"Well mostly 'cause all the quests, events, and such that we do are only available for us, so you pretty much meet each other all the time. And as a high-level player you don't associate with most lower levels." Drix explained. He then noticed Emily23 standing behind Trellaine slightly. "Hey, Em, about before..."

"It doesn't matter. I'm just glad you're talking to me," she interrupted with a smile. She knew he would never be able to apologize, but this was enough for her.

"Okay glad that's over and done with. Now, it seems we need Aura to get to Zero, but she's asleep," Twilmer sighed.

"Then I guess I'll have to wake her up," Drix grinned evilly.

"How do you plan to do that?" Twilmer asked with a small smirk of her own.

"Watch and learn." Drix grabbed the bucket they had used last night to put out the fire and poked Max awake to fill up the bucket.

"Oh I don't know if it's such a good idea." Twilmer mused, but the mischievous look in Drix eyes proved he was determined enough.

ooo

"Damn it," Aura cursed, falling to her knees in defeat. Sparia, her Prinplup, was standing beside her, worse for the wear. Her opponent stripped her of one of her rare items and walked away. She cursed again, slamming her fist on the ground. She had been careless and her carelessness had cost her the fight. She wallowed in her self-pity for quite some time until the sound of soft footprints on the grass around her made her look up. Despite PWO not having been out very long, this gamer had the appearance of an old man. Aura was intrigued as she stood up, slowly due to the fact that she had not yet cured herself since she had been wallowing in her defeat, and observed the old man.

"You there, gamer," the man heralded. He had a Japanese accent. Aura began to walk over to him, stumbling a bit from a leg injury. "You seem to be quite a sloppy fighter and unprepared as well. Out of potions already?"

Aura growled as she pulled one from her inventory and healed herself and Sparia. "No, I just hadn't healed myself yet. Why should I need to explain that to you, old man?" Aura asked, furrowing her brows.

"Do not judge me by my looks, young woman. Just because I am old does not make me any less able to fight than yourself. Even if my skills were what my age would imply them to be, I could still easily defeat you. You appear to be sloppy and very brash."

"You dare insult me? I'll make you eat those words." Aura gritted her teeth and charged forward, swinging her towards the old man. He easily dodged it and pulled out a thin sword of his own. Aura snorted at the small size as the sword she currently had was rather large and showy. She swung at the sword, hoping that hers would break the small sword, but the old man dodged again. "You're fast for an old guy."

"And you are slow for a young woman." Aura growled and lunged towards him. He used his thin sword to block the attack and easily threw her off balance. He then rushed forward and held his sword at her throat; Aura not daring to breath. Aura dropped her sword. The old man nodded, satisfied, and backed off. Aura rubbed her neck and refused to look at him, both angry and sad at having lost yet again that day.

"I underestimated you," Aura admitted with a shrug. "It was a grave mistake to make. Take one of my rare items and go."

"Your attitude pleases me. You lost and instead of wallowing in self pity as you did last time, you appear to be willing to accept and learn from the mistakes you made." Grim considered her and then smiled, tossing her a potion.

Aura looked at it in surprise."You don't need to--"

"Drink it and get up. I want you to face me again."

"Again?" Aura looked at him incredulously, taking a few sips from the potion.

"Yes, but this time concentrate. You react without thinking. You also rely too much on the size and appearance of your sword. A plain, small sword can work circles around a large blade if the bearer knows how to work it."

"What are you getting at, old man?"

"The name is Grim. I would like to teach you the way of the sword if you will let me."

"Why are you rewarding me when I lost?" Aura cocked her head in confusion; the empty potion bottle disappearing from her hand.

"Your attitude shows that you can improve greatly. Something tells me that these sword skills will become very essential for you later on. Also, you remind me of myself back when my father was first teaching me the way of the sword." Grim grinned at her and she nodded. "Now come at me with your best shot."

ooo

An outraged scream pierced the silence of the morning. Twilmer didn't even know that Aura was capable of making a sound like that. Guy jerked awake, scaring Caesar. Aura stood up, soaking wet and pissed off. Drix dropped the bucket, paling at the murderous look on her face. She gave him a look that a lion must give a gazelle before he kills it. "YOU ARE SO FUCKING DEAD!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, not pleased at being woken from her nostalgic dream. Her black hair was plastered to her forehead, her wet clothes clung tightly to her body, and an annoying cold chill ran through her. Her hands began to move towards her katanas, but she stopped them. There was no sense in killing a party member now since they needed the numbers, but once this was all over, Drix would get his punishment.

"Errr..." Twilmer mused, earning herself a death glare. Meanwhile, Drix was nearly toppling over with his laughter. "Did you make any contact with that Zero guy?"

She merely glared, taking off her soaked vest and twisting it to get the water out. "He's training in the Coronet mountain range, but he agreed to meet us halfway there at Koom Valley."

"Koom Valley?" Trellaine interrupted suddenly. "Isn't that obvious Discworld reference?"

Aura shrugged. "I guess some of the programmers had to put in some of their custom content. Looking at you and Twil, I say the programmers could put whatever the fuck they wanted in this game. Either way, he will meet us, but..." She stilled for a second, wondering. "He's not the type of person to do something out as a gesture of kindness. There's usually some profit in it for him so, I doubt he will help us out...or at least not for free."

"Drix says he had crush on you." Emily23 smirked, and then giggled as Aura swatted the swordsman over his head with her icy cold vest.

"We used to hang out together when we were both in the Top Ten. Then I... had to leave PWO." She fell silent for a moment. "When I came back he was way over my level and we couldn't do quests together anymore. That's how I've met this asshole." She pointed to Drix.

"So, we meet in Koom Valley, then? It's not that far." Twilmer felt a little wave of relief wash over her. They started to get ready for departure.

"And you," Aura hissed, jabbing a sharp finger at Drix's arm. "Do anything like that ever again and you can forget about more moments like last night."

ooo

As the party busied themselves getting ready for departure and meeting up with Zero, she walked through the trees to the spot she had agreed to meet with Grim. She saw the old man walking over to her; arms full of bags of healing items. "Do you know how much money I had to spend on these? I bet you are not even grateful, woman." He looked up at her fondly, face betraying his harsh tone. "It is good to see you again, Eskarine. I had grown worried. You never leave your apartment anymore. The newspapers are piling up on your doorstep."

"Ken Yamanka, there's no need to worry about me. I've just gotten caught up in this huge mess." Aura picked through the bags, organizing them neatly in her inventory.

"So I've heard. You sure know how to land yourself in some interesting messes. Are you still using the two blade technique I taught you?"

"Of course I am and it's saved my ass more times than I can count; especially recently. Thanks again for the supplies, Grim." Aura tossed the bags back to Grim, who put them in his inventory.

"Don't mention it. Now good luck and don't forget to keep candles with you in case of storms," he teased. Aura rolled her eyes and waved to him as he used a warp stone to teleport away.

"Old man," she smiled, walking back through the woods to the party, another memory washing over her.

ooo

Aura jumped and quickly dodged an attack sent towards her. She did a flip in the air and landed with her katanas held out to her sides. She blocked the small sword Grim thrust towards her. She gritted her teeth as she defended against a flurry of his own attacks. Finally she saw an opening and took it, knocking the small sword out of his hands. "That's enough for now." Grim picked up his sword and placed it back into its sheath. He pulled out a handkerchief from his inventory and wiped his brow. "You are showing a lot of improvement."

"I'm glad I did decide to train with you. My level is soaring through the roof. And with all this training, you have to be high enough to be the tenth member of the top ten." Aura sat beside her master on the grass, a gentle breeze cooling them after their sparring match. The sun had just begun to set and was painting everything a lovely hue of orange below.

"I seriously doubt that. You see, I am only level thirty five." Grim pulled out two potions, tossing one to Aura.

"What?" She exclaimed, nearly dropping her potion. "You're only level thirty five?" Aura had not realized her trainer had been at such a low level and yet he had mastered each sword skill perfectly. She had never thought to check his level either, assuming he was well over her own.

"It's not the level, but the skill." Grim took a sip from his potion, which was satisfyingly cold.

"But you have such stamina and your skill suggests you must have been training nonstop in this game, but you're level is so surprisingly low..." Aura trailed off, having yet to uncork her own potion as she rolled it back and forth between her hands.

"Ahh, you see my parents owned a dojo in Japan before they moved to America after World War II. My father taught me everything he knew about swordplay and respect and so the skills just came naturally to me in this game. I am old and not able to move around well without a cane in real life, so this game is a pleasant release from those limitations and be able to wield a sword like I once did. I used to be a martial arts teacher myself." Grim smiled at her shocked expression. "Now drink your potion before it gets warm."

Aura obeyed as she watched the old man with renewed respect. He must have been through a lot in his life. The two spent the rest of the evening swapping stories between breaks from sparring matches.

ooo

Aura emerged on the other side of the woods, walking towards the small rag tag group of gamers. Somehow the fate of many things had become their problem. What a fine mess they had gotten themselves into. "Hey Aura!" Drix popped out of nowhere, scaring the swordswoman out of her thoughts. She snarled and threw her still drenched vest at him hitting him in the chest before storming off ahead.

"Koom Valley isn't that far ahead, come on," Aura stormed forward, leading the way. Everyone shared a chuckled behind her back as they followed behind. Most were relieved to finally be on the move again.

ooo

A particularly nasty thunderstorm was brewing outside. Eskarine was glad that she and Madeline were safe indoors. She stood to get a snack when a lightning strike hit very near her apartment and the power flickered off. "Just fucking great," she hissed. She hadn't even thought to get any candles and lord help her if she could remember where the flashlights were. She sighed and walked towards the front door. "I'm going to ask the neighbors if they have any candles," Esk called over her shoulder as she shut the door behind her.

She walked to the door right beside theirs and knocked. She could hear someone shuffling around inside. Soon the door opened and an old man with a cane appeared at the door. "What can I help you with?" he asked, looking up. Aura could have sworn she recognized that voice, but shook it off.

"You wouldn't happen to have any spare candles I could borrow, would you?" Esk asked, slightly embarrassed. She saw the old man had already set up several around his apartment.

"Ahh, yes I do. One moment please," the man nodded and began going through his drawers. As he did, Eskarine couldn't help but look around. She noticed an online gaming helmet sitting next to his computer and his apartment had many different swords hanging around as decoration. Suddenly something clicked. "Here you are," the old man returned, handing her a bow of small candles.

"Thank you, Grim." She smiled. The old man looked up at her and shook his head with a grin.

ooo

End Part 43

Just back story and some plot.


	44. Maxed Out

Pokémon World Online

Part 44: Maxed Out

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. And I don't own Disc World references, which belongs to Terry Pratchit. This part is dedicated to Guy. A small portion of this is written by him too (a certain exchange) and thanks to him for helping me sort out a few details. And yes, I enjoy messing with Aura and Guy ever so much. Read on to find out what I mean.

ooo

Guy lagged behind the others as they marched towards Koom Valley. His mind kept wandering back to the events that took place at PWO Corp. When he had taken out the butter knife and began his attack, his motions weren't his own. Also, when he sliced Dil in half, he could feel the butter knife sword absorbing the power from Dil and consuming him. Trellaine noticed the herbalist falling behind and slowed down his pace so he could catch up with him. "What's troubling you?" Trellaine asked, pulling out an orange to cure his hunger.

"The knife," Guy said as if it was obvious, and honestly it was.

"It's never been a problem before." Trellaine looked up at Guy, who was slightly taller.

"I'm worried about this," Guy said softly, trying to keep his voice down. "The Knife didn't work the way it always has. I felt… I felt like I wasn't me. I did not cut Dil down. It was the Knife that did it. I think I should not use it anymore."

"Oh come on, it can't have been that different," Trellaine spoke as he peeled an orange. "I can't imagine my coding being that far off."

"This world is becoming real, isn't it? The coding you did might not even exist anymore. It's part of this thing, just like we're becoming part of this world," the herbalist countered. "I was not in control. It was like I was on auto-pilot! That scares the crap out of me! You know what we based this thing on! If it becomes real, do you have any idea what'll happen?"

"The world as we know it will cease to exist, and a new order shall rise from its ashes, and we shall be its -" Trellaine started, delving into the Brotherhood.

"Cut that out!" Guy interjected. "I'm serious, Chris! This whole 'PWO becoming real' thing is going way out of hand! Don't you remember? The respawn countdown hasn't shown up in ages, despite god knows how many KOs we've caused!"

"Fine, have it your way," Trellaine sighed. "I'm aware we're playing with fire. But right now, we need to focus on stopping Dream. And if the Knife is the only way we can do that, then so be it. I'm also aware of the countdown issue… and it means one of two things: firstly, it could mean the character is dead, and a surprised gamer lifts his helmet in frustration and tries to contact Customer Support. Secondly, it could mean…"

"… Trouble," Guy finished grimly after Trellaine trailed off when realization hit. "It could leave whoever gets cut, burnt, or blown to smithereens in a lot of pain, because of the pain receptors built into the system. But then… Ever seen The Matrix, Chris? … 'I thought you said it wasn't real.'"

"'Your Mind makes it real.'" Trellaine said as he picked up the quote.

"'But that means that if you die in the Matrix…'" Guy urged him on.

"'The body cannot live without the Mind.' … Dear god!" Trellaine gasped. "If your brain is tricked into believing YOU died…!"

"People could end up getting killed," Guy stated. "And the counter's been down for quite a while already. God knows how many have been KO'd in that time! There could be a huge pile of corpses by now! And remember how we can't log out? What if someone just removes his helmet to quit that way? His mind is trapped in here, and if it gets separated from the body… We need to get word out. How good is your network?"

"Same as yours," the mage replied, after which they nodded at each other and attempted to open their PM consoles… only they wouldn't show. Surprised, they tried again. But it failed. "… Houston… we have a problem…"

"Screw this shit!" Twilmer cursed ahead of them, becoming extremely exhausted from trying to keep up with the group on her own two paws for once. She pulled out her charm and was about to activate it when Trellaine stopped her.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. What if you need to be a human later but cannot because your charm needs to recharge and you are stuck as a Pichu?" He looked at her and she reluctantly dropped the charm.

"Why don't you just ride on my shoulder like usual?" Helium asked looking down at her.

"I've gotten used to relying on my own two legs...err...paws now I suppose." Twilmer fell behind once again. "Who the hell made a creature with no legs and all feet?"

"Why don't you run on all fours like a wild Pichu?" Emily23 suggested, looking back at her.

"I am not a wild Pichu," Twilmer sniffed. After falling behind yet again, she gave up and got down on all fours trying to keep up with the group. The position, however, was very awkward for her and she ended up stumbling and falling over. "I hate my life," she groaned into the ground.

Everyone chuckled except Helium. He walked towards her and bent down, holding out his arm. Twilmer sighed in defeat and climbed onto his shoulder. "So what's the quickest way to Koom Valley?" Twilmer asked, pretending that the moment before didn't happen though the blush on her cheeks told otherwise.

"The quickest way cuts through Agato Town. I don't think that it's a good idea to go through a town when we are the most wanted gamers," Aura said as she examined her map.

"Agato? Why that's the town I worked at back when I was a moderator!" Twilmer's ears perked up as she smiled. "I know the guy working as moderator now and it's such a small town that no one will realize it's us. We just need to change all of our outfits and we should be fine." Twilmer suggested. Everyone nodded and began looking through their inventory for other outfits.

"So, they put you in charge of a small town, eh Twilmer?" Drix smirked evilly at her as he pulled on a suit of armor, which was a rather clever disguise.

"Shut up or I'll make you shut up," Twilmer's cheeks sparked.

Aura blushed as she turned around dressed in an outfit that looked as if it came straight out of an old western. "You say anything, ANYTHING at all, and I will kill you," she growled. She was glaring at Drix, though her threat went for the entire party. Drix merely whistled, closing the helmet so he could laugh freely without being heard.

"This seems terribly, terribly wrong," Guy looked extremely irritated as he was now clad in a pink robe. Helium smiled as he wore Guy's navy blue robes. The two didn't have any extra outfits and had simply swapped robes. Guy, being taller than Helium, didn't quite fit in the robe and his legs and arms were more exposed then they should have been. "Oh no, this doesn't look gay in the least." Meanwhile Helium was swimming in Guy's robe as the sleeves completely swallowed his arms.

Trellaine put on an orange patterned robe. Everyone raised an eyebrow, but remained silent. "Oh come off it. You guys can't honestly say that you are surprised." He had them there. Emily23 changed from her Bunneary outfit to a Flaffy one which was just as slutty as the last one.

"Alright, I think we're ready now. We just need to pass quickly through this town, so no one do anything stupid," Twilmer commanded. The party set off, Emily23 jingling the bell around her neck.

"Can I see if they have a Lopunny outfit, Miss Pichu? I mean, I don't really want to wear a Bunneary outfit if my partner is no longer a Bunneary." Emily23 begged.

"No, absolutely not! We don't have time to meander around in Agato." Twilmer looked down at her sternly from her perch on Helium's shoulder.

"Oh come on, Twilmer. This may be the last town we ever enter. Let the girl have some fun. What can it hurt?" Aura looked up at Twilmer.

Twilmer sighed, not able to resist Aura's pleading look. "Okay fine, but no more than thirty or forty minutes. We have to get to Zero today," Twilmer grumped. Emily2 bounced up and down, the bell jingling as she did so. Lopunny mimicked her, but she bounced a lot higher than before and surprised herself. She ran off into the town; Max not far behind.

"And this is one of the people I've chosen to help me save the world," Twilmer shook her head. Helium smiled and patted Twilmer's fur. She purred for a second before slapping his hand away and glaring ahead.

ooo

Emily23 slowed down so that Max could catch up to her. She held his paw in her hand as they walked to a nearby stall. She browsed through the merchandise the NPC was offering and finally found the outfit she was looking for. It looked almost exactly like the Bunneary one she had except it had been modified to match its evolved counterpart. Emily23 handed over the money for it and resisted the urge to try it on right then and there as they were undercover. Now that that was out of the way, she just needed to find a gamer willing to raise Max.

"I wonder what kind of class you'd work best with. I don't think you're good at finding things, so not an item hunter. You aren't fast so a grace master is definitely out. Maybe a defender or something," she babbled on as she walked down the streets. The town was small and there weren't many people around. Oh well, she would just have to start asking people one by one.

"Excuse me!" She approached a harsh looking young man who had an exaggerated Egyptian appearance.

"What do you want?" he asked harshly as he turned, but was taken aback as his eyes fell on her skimpily clad body. "I mean, excuse my harshness, miss what was it?"

"I didn't introduce myself, but I'm Emily23! What's your name?" she asked.

"I'm Yagasaki," he stated simply. "What can I help you with?"

"I need to find a partner for Max, this Slowbro," she introduced. Yagasaki raised an eyebrow as he looked down at the pink Pokémon. "You see I'm a tamer and I've raised this Pokémon since he was a Slowpoke, only it's not doing him any good to stick with me, so I'm trying to find a partner for him."

"That girl sure talks a lot," Yagasaki thought to himself, looking down at the Slowbro in disgust. "I suppose I could help you, for a bit."

"Oh that would be lovely!" Emily23 bounced up and down, Lopunny taking smaller bounces this time when she mimicked her partner. The two set off together, but everyone they came to either already had a partner or was not interested in befriending a Slowbro. Emily23 held a guilty hope that no one would take Max because she had gotten so attached to him, but she pushed this hope aside. She had to do what was best for her partner. She finally sat down on a bench, tired of getting turned down. "I don't understand," she complained to Yagasaki, "Max is such a good Pokémon, but no one will give him a chance. Hey, you don't have a partner; would you like to take Max?"

"Me?" Yagasaki looked shocked. "Um, I'm not sure I'm ready for another partner at the moment." He looked away and down at his hands.

"For another partner?" Emily23 looked up at him in concern. "What do you mean?"

"My last partner was murdered. For some reason, he never came back." Yagasaki stood up, not looking at Emily23.

"The same thing happened to the swordsman in my party. His partner was murdered and he was so extremely sad." She began to mess with the lace of her outfit.

There was a crashing sound. The two gamers jolted up and looked around for the source of the commotion. "What the hell?" Yagasaki looked on as Ontario and Elra came marching towards them. "Emily23?" Ontario raised an eyebrow in recognition.

"Emily23? Like the one of that wanted party?" Yagasaki looked hard at her.

"Ontario and that girl who hates Miss Pichu, what are you doing here?" Emily23 looked from one to the other in shock.

"Well, if she's here, then Twilmer must be here too. Let's draw her out into the open." Elra stepped forward, producing a bubble with her bubble staff. Vaporeon froze is and she hit it, knocking it into a nearby building and causing a loud explosion.

"Stop that! She'll get caught," Emily23 looked from Elra to Ontario. "Ontario, tell her to stop!" Emily23 looked to Ontario. In the last minutes he had been with their party, he had gone out of his way to save her. She knew there was still good in him somewhere.

"Elra," Ontario looked up at her.

"Oh cry me a river," Elra crossed her arms and shook her head. She was just about to form another bubble when Max pointed a finger at her and she stopped in her tracks. "What the hell," she said stiffly.

"Max is using psychic." Emily23 looked proudly at the Slowbro. Yagasaki looked over at Max too. Could a little Slowbro really be this powerful?

"You little brat! Vaporeon, get that Slowbro off my case." Vaporeon ran forward, but Lopunny jumped up and used her long ears to throw the Pokémon away. Yagasaki held up his shield in front of Emily23 and glared at Ontario. Never would he think that his rival of sorts would sink this low.

"Why do you want to hurt Twilmer?" Emily23 looked up at her accusingly.

"Because we're rivals dear and that's what we do," Elra laughed. "Now put me down."

"Not unless you leave and never come back."

"I can't make promises," Elra shrugged.

"Well, then, Max, teleport her away." Max nodded and with a flick of his claw, Elra and Vaporeon vanished.

"That Slowbro did all of that?" Yagasaki looked at Emily23, her long blonde hair moving with the gentle breeze.

"Ontario, you should come back to the party. We could use you," Emily23 looked up at him sincerely. Ontario looked at her for a second and shook his head, backing up and then turning and running away. "What's with him?" she blinked.

"Stubborn old goat," Yagasaki remarked. "I guess I'll report the damage on these buildings to the mod."

"I guess I'll have to return to Twilmer. She's probably already mad that I'm later than I said I would be. I guess this means Max will have to come along. It was nice meeting you." Emily23 turned to leave, but Yagasaki stopped her.

"I'll become Max's partner, if you'll let me." Emily23's eyes widened in shock.

"Are you sure?" she asked, looking at him sideways.

"Yes, I am."

ooo

"It's about time you showed up. We almost left without you," Twilmer grumbled as Emily23 and Lopunny walked towards the group who were seated on benches on the edge of town.

"Oh, so is that why you kept asking where she was and checking your map for her and worrying," Drix teased. Twilmer thunder shocked him.

"Where's that Slowbro?" Guy asked.

"Oh, Max? He's no longer with me. I found him a partner." Emily23 began to tear up. Aura walked over to her and gave her a hug. "No, it's okay. He's out of danger now and he has a partner. It's better this way." She whiped her eyes with the back of her hand and smiled.

"You've grown up," Aura smiled.

ooo

Yagasaki watched the party from the top of a cliff as they entered the forest on the other side. His eyes lingered on Emily23, clad in a Lopunny outfit. He sighed and turned. Max looked down at her as well with a yawn. "Come on. Let's find Ontario."

ooo

End Part 44

Ahh, so Aura still has that Wild West outfit ;) I loved writing this part. Emily23 needs more love : and sorry Treecko(no) if this is taking Yagasaki out of character, but I couldn't resist since he doesn't have a partner anymore XD I'm relatively sad because the end is drawing near :(


	45. Is Evolution the Solution?

Pokémon World Online

Part 45: Is Evolution the Solution?

Disclaimer: No, I don't own Pokémon or anything, but I do own the Pokémon World Online idea and concept. Sorry for the HUGE break I took from this, but school and apathy took over my life ; anyways enjoy this part :3 small, but shows that I'm still here and updating.

ooo

The forests of Agato stretched for miles in every direction. Agato may have been a small town, but the forested area more than made up for the size of the town. One reason Twilmer had liked being a mod of Agato was that Mount Coronet was right by and she had been able to train there daily. Victoria walked up beside her and nodded. The two shared a short chat before Twilmer became too tired of walking alongside the group on her own two feet and climbed back on Helium's shoulder. "You know," Emily23 commented, "you don't have to be a Pokémon to understand other Pokémon. Their body language can say a lot. That's how you can tell a truly fierce Pokémon from one who is only acting tough."

"Why are you telling us this?" Twilmer raised the Pichu equivalent of an eyebrow.

"It just seemed appropriate since we're heading to the Dialga and Palkia event." She shrugged and continued skipping along; Lopunny bouncing beside her.

"It's not just body language," Drix spoke unexpectedly; "it goes much deeper than that. It's a feeling. A feeling of being on the same line and truly understanding each other. This can only be achieved if you spend enough time with each other and truly care for each other. You don't need body language if you have that..." Drix trailed off as a branch nearly smacked him in the head. "What's the big idea?" he growled and noticed that Aura was in front of him.

"Oh sorry, I didn't know the branch would hit you. I was merely pulling it back out of my own way," Aura said in a tone that hinted that she knew exactly what she was doing.

"What's wrong with you today?" Drix scowled.

"I guess I'm just a little moody because I had a wakeup call of a bucket of ice water." Aura's voice was dangerously sweet as she continued leading the party forward.

"That woman can hold a grudge," Drix mumbled to himself. A sharp cry of a bird Pokémon snapped everyone out of their thoughts.

"Oh not this again," Twilmer smacked her forehead as a Staraptor dived from above them and towards the plump Pichu admin. Twilmer found herself being lifted into the air. "Déjà vu. You stupid bird, let me...wait, you're the same Staraptor as before." Twilmer looked at the bird, able to recognize small identifying details that only other Pokémon would notice. Twilmer grabbed her pendant and turned it, turning into a human. She was too heavy for the Staraptor and it dropped her. Twilmer fell to the ground, rubbing her Pichu tail which stayed with her in transformation.

"What is with that bird?" Aura looked up at it, ready to draw her katanas.

"I can handle this," Twilmer grinned and unleashed a thunderbolt. The Staraptor cried out as the attack hit its target and flew away. Twilmer smirked and turned her pendant, turning back into a Pichu. "That was easy," she brushed her paws together.

"Twilmer, you just used a thunderbolt as a human." Trellaine raised an eyebrow.

Twilmer stood for a second, letting this sink in. "WHAT? This stupid glitch has messed with my character! ARGH! Trellaine, I thought you said this charm was supposed to work like the old one!"

"It does. Personally, I would find being able to use electric attacks as a human useful." Trellaine grinned.

"But wait, if I can use electric attacks as a human, then why did that cure my electricity sickness from before?"

"Beats me. I guess as a human, you are more capable of storing electricity than as a Pichu." He shrugged.

"Didn't you say that that was the same Staraptor as from before?" Emily23 looked up at Twilmer.

"Yes, but I guess this is its natural habitat. Before, it had wandered into the jungle by mistake and was lonely and confused, which is why it went after Bunneary; familiar prey. I guess it finally found its way home. Shouldn't surprise me seeing as how Pokémon are becoming real." Twilmer waved the question away, returning to Helium's shoulder. "Now come on everyone, Zero isn't going to wait for us all day." The group continued onward through the forest, the sky above turning slightly grey.

As her clothes finally started to dry off, Aura's bad mood seemed to lift a little. Pleased that she wasn't freezing to death (she once again promised herself to beat up Drix for that stupid wake up), Aura allowed her mind to wander to past events. Things seemed to be looking up for their little party, though this usually meant that they were headed for a big fall. "You're unusually quiet." Twilmer commented from her perch on Helium's shoulder.

"Ah, I've been eating." Seeing Twilmer's eying her quizzically Aura explained. "In real life, I mean. My neighbor just brought me something to eat."

"Your neighbor?" Twilmer sounded surprised.

"Well, princess, not all of us have private butlers." Aura smirked at the admin's angry expression. "By pure luck, one of my friends in this game turned out to be my neighbor." Aura moved one quite stubborn branch from her way and then released it suddenly, pleased that it snapped right back to its proper place, smacking Drix. Smirking and ignoring his annoyed cursing, Aura continued. "He's a safe choice; I mean, he's too old to try to do some... weird stuff with my body while I'm online."

Twilmer laughed.

"So!" Emily23 butted in the conversation, though neither Aura nor Twilmer seemed to mind much. "This Zero guy... are we about to witness a tearful reunion of old friends?"

"Ha." Drix's faint murmur was heard from behind their backs. "As if! This guy is absolutely the worst."

"Oh I don't know." Aura wondered aloud, teasing the other swordsman. "It's not like he and I don't have a history together, so who knows?"

Drix expression was a bit awkward, like he had just been slapped. Aura decided it was a very good way to pay him back for the unpleasant wake up this morning.

The sky above began to turn really dark and a slight drizzle started to fall from the sky. "This completely sucks," Twilmer grumped, ears drooping slightly.

"Hmmm, there should be a cave or something nearby that we can take shelter in." Guy looked at the map, tracing his finger over it.

"Then let's go!" Twilmer commanded as the party began running through the rain.

ooo

Ontaro had made it to the mountain range that ran parallel to Coronet. He thought of how Emily23 had still greeted him after all this time. He had betrayed them and yet she had treated him with more kindness than he deserved. True, he had saved her life when Dream had ambushed them, but that didn't make up for the fact that he had betrayed Twilmer and her party. He sighed as Machop walked beside him. Sure, the fact that he had finally gotten laid (he refrained from mentioning that this was cybering and not actual sex to his football buddies) was a satisfactory reason, but his conscience--annoying thing--did nag him from time to time.

Ontaro walked up the mountain with Machop beside him. After a bit of hiking, he came upon a dojo. Mountains were popular defender training areas and this was no doubt one of them. He entered and found many younger gamers inside practicing techniques with their partners. An older man watched over the young trainees, nodding in approval. "Can I help you?" the older man asked as he walked over to Ontaro.

"Oh, no, I just stepped inside to see what kind of training center this was." Ontaro noted the younger gamers and decided this wasn't the place for him.

"Well, this is mainly for the training of younger gamers, but if you'd like to help, I'd greatly appreciate it." The older man grinned.

"What? But I don't want..." Ontaro trailed off as his conscience nagged him. "You have to be kidding me," he muttered to himself. He finally sighed and looked at the older man. "What kind of help do you need?"

"Just help to train these youngins in the way of the shield so they can properly enjoy the game and level up, of course. The name's Genji." Genji and Ontaro shook hands. Ontaro sighed as he was walked through what to do to help. The kids crowded around him, impressed to see an older defender. Ontaro just shook his head. Oh well, maybe this would redeem himself for what he had done.

ooo

Everyone shuddered in the little cave. It was just big enough for all of them to squeeze inside. Twilmer shook herself like a wild Pokémon, making rain droplets hit the other players. "Sorry, I'm starting to get some habits of a Pokémon," Twilmer said jokingly, though her voice held a tone of worry that Trellaine caught. "Can I transform into a human now?" Twilmer was uneasy.

"I'd prefer you didn't." Trellaine sighed. He didn't like to see the little admin distressed, but they had to play things safe.

"What if that Zero guy tries to attack?" Drix crossed his arms, refusing to look at Aura. She rolled her eyes.

"Fine," Twilmer sat down, shivering slightly. Pichu bodies weren't exactly the best for keeping warm in the rain. Helium pulled her into a warm embrace. Twilmer was thankful for the warmth so she didn't even try to put up a fight. Aura smirked as she looked down at the two. Victoria eyed Helium, watching his every move to be sure he didn't harm her partner.

Just then a lightning strike hit too close for comfort right outside. The group shifted uncomfortably as another one struck the ground. "What the hell?" Guy looked up.

Trellaine pulled out a metal orb and threw it on the ground outside the cave. The lightening began striking it. "This is no ordinary storm," he looked around, brows furrowed in concentration, until a rumbling from above cause all of them to look up and run out of the cave as the ceiling started to cave in. Giant boulders fell where they had been sitting not moments before. Turns out they had made camp under a Graveler's nest. Twilmer shuddered slightly. She was never fond of Gravelers and now hated them after Satoshi had used one against her. Twilmer grabbed her head suddenly as a strange feeling gripped her.

"The last time I saw a storm like this was during the Kyogre event," Aura said, wiping back wet locks of raven hair from her eyes. That had been the first orb she'd won and regrettably traded for a western outfit. She did have a spare, though. Kyogre orbs were used to end torrential downpours and were essential to accessing some of the events in PWO. Aura could use her spare one to end this rain, but it seemed Trellaine had a plan and she did not want to waste a perfectly good item.

Twilmer's cheeks sparked and she began walking forward almost by instinct. She stumbled around a bit clumsily and felt a splitting headache on the verge of attacking her. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning struck the ground right in front of her. Something told her to dive into it--to absorb it-- and she wasn't one to ignore mysterious impulses that came out of nowhere.

She jumped forward into the bolt of lightning that seemed to linger longer than was physically possible. Twilmer was suspended in the bolt; absorbing the energy and then releasing the excess in a discharge attack. Once she had done so, she felt better than she ever had since before she became a Pichu. All the wariness from the over exertion of lightening attacks disappeared completely. She felt a great power emerge within her and fill every nerve. She began to glow. She was evolving. Something didn't feel right, though. She was just glitched to be a Pichu and shouldn't be able to evolve as a gamer. She strained against the feeling and slowly the glow began to dissolve. She was still a Pichu. Pichus needed love to evolve, but even so with her big party that had become her family, she didn't feel right evolving.

Trellaine had seen what happened. He walked over to her and knelt down beside her. "You could've gotten stronger," he whispered.

"Yeah, well, I don't plan on sticking with this body for much longer anyways. I don't need power as a Pichu," Twilmer crossed her arms with a grump. Trellaine nodded, knowing she was not telling the full truth.

"You've gotten attached to that body, haven't you? I'd be very wary of that if I were you. No good can come of it," he warned. Twilmer humphed and turned away. Trellaine stood up and walked over to the metal orb he had thrown onto the ground.

"Hey guys, the rain is stopping," Helium smiled as he looked up at the sky. The lightening had completely stopped and the rain was slowing to a small drizzle. Helium and most of the party had not noticed what had happened with Twilmer, except for Emily23. She walked cautiously towards her admin and kneeled down, patting her furry head. Twilmer was too tired and distressed to protest and welcomed the comfort.

"I'm glad you didn't evolve," Emily23 whispered so no one else could hear.

"I was scared." Twilmer found herself admitting, which surprised her as she generally disliked discussing her internal problems with others. "I mean what if evolving means I'm becoming more like a real Pichu? This game is becoming real. Since I'm a Pokémon, does this mean I'm becoming real along with it in the game?" Twilmer shuddered at the thought.

Sparia was enjoying herself; splashing through a few puddles nearby and ruffling her feathers as more rain fell. Aura laughed, "You're like a Piplup again whenever it rains." Sparia grinned as she cooed softly. Aura stroked the feathers of her partner lovingly. Drix watched in discontent, lamenting for his departed Salamence. Suddenly the storm picked up once again. The group tensed as the rain began pounding down upon them.

Twilmer was still grappling with the possibility that she almost evolved and was not really capable of responding to anything at the moment. Sensing her internal conflict, Trellaine took over commands. "Take cover under that tangle of tree roots," Trellaine commanded, nodding at Guy, who nodded back. "Sorry to take your command, Twilmer." Trellaine nudged the small rodent who had yet to move.

"I'll let it slide this time," Twilmer responded with a shrug. She looked at the hollow, which was actually bigger than the cave they had taken cover in early and looked quite cozy. Taking that as a good omen, she dove into it. Sparia and Victoria decided to stay outside. The rain felt good to Sparia and Victoria just wanted to act tough in front of Sparia.

The party made particularly interesting groups in the hollow. Drix and Aura seemed to be sitting rather close together as did Helium and Twilmer. Emily23 sat beside Lopunny and Guy, which seemed to surprise and distress him. Trellaine hunched near the area where they had entered the tangle of roots and checked to make sure that everything was okay outside before sitting down on Guy's other side.

Twilmer looked outside worriedly as a strong clap of thunder sounded from outside the hollow. She had always found rain to be quite soothing, but now...

Aura sat silently in their temporary shelter, cold sweat creeping up her back. Despite the fact that the rain actually made the area more humid and warmer, she started to feel cold and lightly rubbed her upper arms in a futile attempt to warm herself up. One of her arms connected with Drix's as they sat next to each other, which was probably good since the warmth was reassuring.

"You look odd," Twilmer commented, casting the swordswoman a curious glance.

"Why thank you." Aura's voice dripped with sarcasm. "I barely got dry after today's rather unpleasant wakeup call and now it's back to being drenched again." Twilmer opened her mouth to answer, but then decided against it. She did have a point.

"You know," Drix started his tone a bit nonchalant, "I never thought you of all people would be afraid of thunderstorms." Twilmer's head moved back to look at them again, her attention caught by the comment.

"I am not." Aura hissed.

"Your teeth are chattering so loudly that every being in a five mile radius knows that we're here."

"Shut up, I'm just cold," The black-haired woman hissed again, rubbing her arms a bit harder. Twilmer turned to talk with Helium.

"I fucking hate thunderstorms." Aura muttered more to herself then to any else but Drix still heard it. She leaned her head heavily against the trunk of the tree that provided them shelter, feeling the swordsman shifting a bit closer, his arm providing more of that comforting warmth.

ooo

End Part 45


	46. Zero Resistance

Pokémon World Online

Part 46: Zero Resistance

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. Bleh, sorry for the long time between updates, but midterm exams and the fact that I've been sick lately...plus laziness. Anyways, here it is finally ; This part is dedicated to Moya for being the one to introduce the Zero plotline in the first place :3

ooo

"Alright, we need to get to Zero and I'm sure he's not going to wait around all day. Isn't there anything we can do about this?" Twilmer asked, feeling cold and shaky.

"Hmm, I do think I have a particularly interesting trick that can be used here." Trellaine rolled up his sleeves and began chanting. The rain clouds shook in the sky and then began rushing backwards, cutting east. "That should work. Thank the node for this skill." Guy rolled his eyes as he stood up, stretching.

"What did you do?" Twilmer asked, cocking her head to the side in curiosity.

"That storm was not natural, but rather a strong rain dance from a Pokémon and a mixture of a bit of electricity from either another Pokémon or a gamer's electric magic or electric powered weapon." Trellaine pulled his sleeves back down as the group began to emerge from their shelter.

"You think someone did this? Who would want to attack us?" Twilmer asked, and then smacked her forehead. Pretty much everyone in the game wanted to turn them in or destroy them.

"Seems you answered that for yourself," Guy smirked.

Twilmer felt an energy surge as the urge to evolve overtook her again. She fought it off and soon it had subsided. If she evolved in Pokémon form, then what would happen to her in human form? Also, if she was on the brink of evolving, did that make her as real as the Pokémon around them? She shook her head and decided to dismiss these thoughts. "We need to go find Zero, so let's go!" Twilmer said, talking a mile a minute. Drix snorted as Aura took the lead again. Twilmer zipped along, using agility and quick attack. She felt completely energized and was able to keep up on her own without the need of riding on Helium's shoulder. Strangely, Helium's shoulder felt cold without the weight of the little admin.

"Don't get your hopes up about Zero. He's a greedy bastard and a bigger jerk then I can be. He won't help us if there's nothing in it for him and I doubt we can offer him something that will please him enough to help," Drix snorted, crossing his arms.

"No, I think we have just what he wants," Aura said thoughtfully. Drix humphed at this.

"What could that possibly be?" Twilmer asked, looking through her inventory. She had nothing very valuable--except a summon. Summons were won in some legendary events and were used to summon that legendary to battle one time, which is why many people saved them. She noticed with despair that she didn't have any everstones to suppress the urge to evolve. "I have a Cresselia summon from the lunar event," Twilmer offered.

"Cresselia's power varies depending on the phase of the moon. Would you honestly give him a near indestructible--when used at the right phase of the moon--summon for his help?" Trellaine raised an eyebrow. Twilmer's ears drooped as she put the crescent feather back into her inventory.

"I doubt we'll need that with...my persuasions," Aura paused thoughtfully. "If he does need persuasion, trust me, I have bargaining chips worth more than a summon." Twilmer knew Aura was an item collector and would undoubtedly have an everstone, but her pride, plus her desire to keep her evolution problems a secret, stopped her.

Finally the forest began to thin out around them. Twilmer was once again riding on Helium's shoulder as she had used up her extra energy fighting off the urge to evolve. The terrain around them became rough and rocky as they entered a canyon.

Aura looked around at the giant rocky walls that jutted up on either side of them and remarked, "This is the area where we're supposed to meet Zero. I'll lead you to the exact spot."

"Finally, we're actually getting somewhere," Twilmer grinned, believing the end of things was in sight.

"Strange, you think he would've been here by now," Aura placed a finger to her mouth thoughtfully.

"Well we can't be too early with all the things that happened in the forest, so that jerk is just awfully late..." Drix said, unafraid to hide his annoyance.

"I would advise you to pay attention to your surroundings before you start calling people names behind their backs, you jackass."

The party turned around to see a young, tall man stepping out from behind nearby rock. He was wearing a black grace master suit (the newest released model, level 90 and up, Twilmer thought enviously) and an opened up leather jacket with white fur on the cuffs. His white hair was short to prevent it from falling into his eyes.

"You're the guy we're looking for?" Twilmer eyed him suspiciously, but Aura seemed to know the man. Closing the distance between them, the grace master greeted her with a firm handshake.

"It's been a while. You look... alive."

Aura laughed, "Right, you and your damn compliments. Anyway, let's cut to the business. As I wrote to you in the PWO mail, our little party needs your help."

"Satoshi is going to bust us all if we don't do something." Twilmer butted in, jumping on a nearby rock to gain more height. "If we don't act fast this whole thing is going to blow in our faces."

"That's still not enough," Zero said simply.

"Huh?" Twilmer was slightly taken aback by his quick answer.

"You mean you want me to guide your little... party, so to speak, just because it is a right thing to do?"

"Err..." Twilmer faltered, not sure what to say.

"Let me handle this," Aura whispered to Twilmer. Zero sneered at her, and then turned his gaze to Aura.

"Didn't know you left US, the Ten, to associate with these kind of... players." Zero motioned with a hand at the rest of the party.

"Hey!" Drix fumed. "You might want to watch what you're saying."

"Ah, Drix." Zero crossed his arms. "If I remember right, I still owe you a rematch for your last lost fight with me, am I right?" Drix looked like Zero had hit him; His hand twitched towards the handle of his sword but he restrained himself at the last possible moment.

"Either way," Zero turned back to Twilmer, "unless you can give something good in exchange, I doubt I will be any assistance to you."

"Well..." Twilmer hesitated, and then almost reached for the feather in her inventory, but Aura stopped her with a small motion of her hand.

"Wait, Twil, let me handle it." The swordswoman let her eyes travel briefly over the faces of her companions, lingering a bit longer on Drix and then Twilmer. "I've got something that might pick your interest." She turned back to Zero. She grabbed the surprised grace master by the sleeve of his jacket, pulling him away, stopping a small distance away. The party could see them talking about something quietly, as if sharing some kind of secret.

Twilmer watched the scene anxiously. If there was one thing in the world she hated more than her ex, it would have to be secrets that were kept from her. "Man I'd kill for that gear," Twilmer sighed.

"You'd have to be at a higher level, now wouldn't you?" Drix sneered. He was moody from the appearance of Zero. "Some great admin you are. What are you now, level 73?"

"So? I've just been busy doing a lot of administrative work for the company and haven't had time for battling as much as I used to when I wasn't an admin," Twilmer glared daggers at Drix.

"Excuses, eh? Can't say I expected more from you. You're not even an admin anymore, not that you were even a good one to begin with," Drix ran a hand through his hair before getting hit with a thunderbolt. "What the hell?"

"Admin or not, you have no right to talk to me like that," Twilmer hissed, positively livid. Drix growled as he pulled out his sword, hitting Twilmer with his fiery blade. Twilmer flew into a rock, but then got up and hit him with another thunderbolt. Drix went to slice her again, but Victoria caught the blade, hissing at the pain coursing through her body. Tough as she was, she was still an ice type, weak to fire. She managed to throw the blade off and stood protectively in front of Twilmer.

"Oh that's just fine. Use your partner against someone who has none." Drix snorted, growing angrier.

"Victoria, step down. I won't have you getting involved in a personal squabble." Victoria nodded, stepping back. She had never seen Twilmer this mad before. It was quite frightening. Twilmer used thunder as Drix lunged forward. Twilmer dodged, landing on a rock.

"Miss Pichu, Drix, you two are on the same party! You can't fight," Emily23 looked really worried as the two exchanged blows.

"You sure this party is the one that can take down Satoshi?" Guy raised an eyebrow as he looked at Trellaine.

"Not at all. Orange?" Trellaine offered Guy one of the round fruits. Guy sighed as he accepted it and put it into his inventory.

Aura looked over at Drix and Twilmer and furrowed her brows. Zero merely sneered. "Damn it you two, stop it this instant!" Aura shouted. Twilmer stopped, but not before Drix's blade connected with her head. Twilmer flew back into one of the sides of the canyon, falling limply to the ground.

"Twilmer!" Helium shouted, running up beside her.

"What the hell did you do?" Aura hissed at Drix, restraining the urge to smack him.

Zero just laughed. "You expect me to help this party when it can't even help itself?"

Twilmer finally managed to stand up, rubbing her head. She then began to glow once again. The party gasped and Zero looked at her with mild interest. Twilmer fought and finally stopped glowing. She fell back, exhausted. "You almost evolved?" Emily23 asked.

"Yeah. I've been fighting the urge to evolve for some time now," Twilmer sighed.

"Wouldn't you want to evolve to get stronger?" Drix asked. Twilmer glared at him.

"There's more to life than just becoming the strongest you can. Why didn't you tell us, Twil?" Aura asked, looking down at the small admin with concern. Aura suddenly had an idea. She sifted through her inventory and pulled out an everstone. "Here," she handed the everstone to Twilmer.

"You sure I can just have this?" Twilmer asked.

"I have plenty of those, but even if I only had one, I'd still give it to you." Aura smiled.

"Yoink." Trellaine grabbed the stone and Twilmer's pendant in one fell swoop.

"HEY! Give those back!" Twilmer glared at him.

Trellaine mumbled an incantation and the two fused together. "And here you go. An everstone! I can't believe I never thought about that before."

"What did you do, you hacker?" Twilmer asked, taking her pendant back.

"I fused your pendant with the everstone. This means that you can now become a human and stay that way. Of course you can still become a Pichu if you want. The everstone will allow you to stay a human just like before." Trellaine smiled. Twilmer hugged his leg and Trellaine bent down, patting the tiny, furry head.

"Alright then, screw this." Twilmer turned her pendant and became human once more. She smiled; glad to be back in her true form. She laughed as a gust of wind blew through her long, white hair, pulled back in a ponytail. How good it felt to have pale skin instead of yellow fur. "Trellaine, I owe you. You're such a hacker."

"I'm not a hacker; I merely use my resources wisely." He bowed humbly.

As the party fussed over Twilmer's regaining of her human form, Aura finished her conversation with Zero, unbeknownst to the rest. "So, we have a deal?"

"I guess so." The grace master shrugged, turning his eyes back to the party members for a second. "Though I thought you'd never--"

"Hey." Aura interrupted him. "I never thought about it before either, but I guess... the situation we are in justifies it all. Even if that means you were right from the very beginning."

"Are you actually admitting I am right? You really must be desperate."

"Che." Aura crossed her arms on her chest. "Whatever." She looked back to Twilmer and others. "Just... don't tell them. I don't want them to know."

"It's your decision."

"I promised that I'd protect the admin no matter what. I'm in." Zero nodded and walked back to the group. Aura hung back for a second with a sigh. She couldn't believe she was doing this, especially after she promised herself she wouldn't...

Twilmer smirked at the prospect of having a Pikachu tail under her cloak instead of a Pichu tail, but knew she'd never evolve. For reasons beyond her, she had become extremely attached to being a Pichu. It felt weird to be a human now, and she had the urge to twitch her ears. Everything seemed quieter as well. She missed her super hearing. She shook her head; what on Earth was she thinking?

"Alright then, back to business," Twilmer smirked and looked at Zero. Her level had gone up, probably added to the levels she had gained as a Pichu. She enjoyed being level 80, now. Apparently her level had gone up by 7 while she was a Pichu. She was now stronger and couldn't wait to test out her moves, and there was no better way than on Satoshi.

"Alright Zero, it is my understanding that you are only a few experience points away from reaching level 99 and the only way to-"

"Do you still believe that your precious PWO Corp is going to help you?" Zero asked, glaring at her. Twilmer didn't back down. Zero was unnerved by the sudden change from Pichu to human, but he didn't show it.

"Alright then, how do you propose we get to the Dialga and Palkia event?" Twilmer asked, crossing her arms. Her stern look was more menacing as a human than as a Pichu.

"First, tell me about this feather," Zero asked. Twilmer's stomach dropped as she realized he had seen the feather when she had brought it out. Zero wasn't stupid and had seen that Aura had tried to hide it.

"That wasn't part of the deal," Aura hissed.

"Deals can change," Zero glanced at her, and then shrugged. "It's not very important anyways," Zero crossed his arms and looked away, but Twilmer knew that she was going to have to be more careful.

ooo

End part 46

PLOT! That's right; we finally have a good deal of plot going on. Sorry this took so long ; hope you enjoyed this part. I promise I won't take this long.


	47. The Last Sanctuary

Pokémon World Online

Part 47: The Last Sanctuary

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. 3 away from 50 and the end is in sight. Thanks to everyone who has stuck with me throughout this project and to my new readers 3 I love you all.

ooo

"I've had it with this natural trap. Is he helping us or not?" Drix asked Aura, motioning to Zero as if he were not there. Zero merely raised his eyebrows.

"I can get you into the Dialga and Palkia event." Zero glared at Drix.

"Good, then lead the way," Drix said, stepping aside to let Zero pass.

"You want me to lead?" Zero asked surprised.

"No, but I don't like the idea of you being behind me," Drix hissed.

"Don't trust me? Good. You shouldn't." Zero took the lead and led the group towards the entrance of Mt. Coronet nearby. They would traverse the mountain by going through it.

"Shouldn't I be the one giving orders?" Twilmer grumped, glaring at Drix.

"Why do those two hate each other?" Helium asked Aura.

"I don't think Zero hates Drix, more doesn't care for him, but Drix definitely hates Zero. Then again, Drix can't stand anyone who could manage to beat him..." Aura trailed off, fiddling with the hilt of one of her katanas. Sparia waddled beside her with a thoughtful look on her face.

"He only managed to beat me with a difference of 20 hit points. I would have had him if he would just stop dodging and face my attacks like a man," Drix growled.

"And the only reason you managed to get my hit points down so far was because of that pet dragon of yours. Where is the old lizard anyways?" Zero asked, temper flaring slightly. Just because he had to work with Drix did not mean that he had to be nice to the bastard. "Don't tell me you lost it."

"You're a fucking dead man!" Drix readied his sword and charged forward. Zero merely dodged it, jumping on top of a large rock. He looked down scornfully at Drix and jumped down, bringing his staff down forcefully. Drix managed to block it, but the blow had knocked him back.

"Stop it both of you!" Aura shouted, stepping between them. "We have a task to accomplish and petty fights are not going to get us any closer to our goal." Drix was going to say something, but decided against it, swinging his sword over his shoulder and stalking away, muttering under his breath.

Aura watched as he went, furrowing her brows. "Smooth move there, Zero. It took me hours to get him out of his shell of misery."

"What do you mean?" Zero raised an eyebrow.

"Salamence is dead; gone for good."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Zero asked, confused. How could a Pokémon be gone for good? They were just bits of data in a game.

"This world has changed, I told you." Aura ran her hand through her short hair. "Something happened, and now if we die, we die for good. The same thing goes for our Pokémon. Satoshi killed his Salamence when we last fought him." Zero looked at her, and then looked after the swordsman. Zero said nothing, but seemed to be lost in his own thoughts. Aura sighed then turned around and walked to Drix direction, hoping to calm down the angry man. They had to get going, and Drix seemed to be in brooding mood again. A long whistle came to her ears, and in the corner of her eye Aura saw a Rapidash galloping in their direction. Heat: Zero's partner.

Victoria jumped back as she eyed the magnificent horse. He snorted, shaking his fiery mane. Victoria took an unconscious step back, being weak to fire types. Sparia merely snorted, watching as her partner walked off to where Drix had disappeared to. "He's beautiful!" Twilmer gasped, walking over to Heat. She held up her hands to show she meant no harm. Heat lowered his head and allowed Twilmer to stroke his neck. "I've never seen a grace master use a Rapidash before. I bet your combos are amazing."

"Of course they are. I'm not in the top ten for nothing. I've been playing this game longer then you have, anyways." Zero put his hands behind his head, yawning lazily.

"Where have Aura and Drix gone to?" Guy asked, looking around. Zero's head snapped around as he looked for Aura. He furrowed his brows when he could not find her.

"Who cares, I say we find a way to pass the time while they're gone!" Twilmer bounced up and down eagerly.

"What did you have in mind?" Helium asked hopefully.

"Zero, why don't you and I spar? Now that I've got my true form back for good now--hopefully--I want to make sure I haven't gotten rusty." Twilmer looked up at Zero. Helium sighed, slightly disappointed.

"Your partner is weak to my partner, you know. The match wouldn't be fair." Zero looked down at Twilmer, raising an eyebrow.

"So? I would be honored to spar with one of the top ten!" Twilmer clasped her hands in front of her, almost begging.

"And she says she's gotten out of her old hero-worshiping habits," Guy said, rolling his eyes.

"Now, Guy, you should know that old habits die hard." Trellaine smiled as he watched Twilmer. Guy grumped, folding his arms across his chest and leaning against a large rock.

"Fine, I'll spar with you for a little bit. Don't say I didn't warn you." Zero pulled out a magnificent staff from his inventory that was emblazoned with fire. Heat pawed at the ground, throwing his head back wildly. Twilmer pulled out her own silver and amethyst decorated staff as Victoria readied her claws. Emily23 watched the battle with interest, eager to see the Rapidash in action. She couldn't deny that it was powerful. His flame blazed healthily and he had a strong muscle structure. Zero charged forward faster than the eye could see. Twilmer looked surprised, but then jumped back instinctually. Zero appeared just where Twilmer had been and smirked, locating her and seemingly disappeared again.

"He's fast," she breathed. Lopunny looked up amazed as well.

"I hope she's okay," Helium said, wringing his hands nervously. Meanwhile Vileplume sniffed at a mushroom he had located. Victoria jumped up, landing on Heat's back. She quickly jumped off as Heat flared his flames. He kept them flared as he charged towards Victoria in a full blown flame wheel attack. Victoria dodged, digging her claws into the side of the rock wall. The flame wheel hit a rock below her and the rock was destroyed. Victoria looked visibly shaken for a second before letting go of the rock wall and bounding forward; Heat in hot pursuit. Victoria began creating ice wall formations using her ice beam to try and slow Heat down, but it was futile as the fiery horse plowed through them with no effort. Victoria stood her ground, hurling a shadow ball. Heat dodged, running to the left. Victoria took this chance to get behind him and hit him with a flurry of shadow balls. They hit their target but didn't appear to do much damage.

Meanwhile, Twilmer had just gotten hit hard with Zero's staff. It dealt fire damage and partially singed Twilmer's leotard. "Bastard," she spat as she got shakily to her feet. She ran as fast as she could, but she was still nowhere near as fast as Zero.

He ran up beside her, smirking, "You know, if this is too much for you, we can end it."

"Never!" Twilmer shouted, dropping her staff in front of Zero, causing him to trip. She quickly picked it back up and held it to Zero's back. "Check," she grinned.

Heat was chasing Victoria now, firing off bursts of flames. Victoria dodged them as best as she could, but a few still hit her. She ran up beside Twilmer and smirked as she formed a plan. She waited until Heat was close and used ice beam on the ground. Heat ran over the ice and lost his balance for a second before digging his hooves in and coming to a stop. He flared his nostrils angrily as he used a fire blast. Victoria tried to dodge, but was caught with the corner of the attack. Twilmer realized too late that she was in the line of fire. She had no choice but to dodge, which left Zero an opening to stand. He disappeared, running faster than the eye could see, and reappeared behind Twilmer, knocking her down and taking her staff. He pointed both of them at her chest and smirked. "Check mate."

"What the hell is going on here?" Aura shouted as she and Drix rejoined the group.

"I just kicked your noble leader's ass." Zero smirked, throwing Twilmer's staff to the ground as he put his own back into his inventory.

"You did not kick my ass! If Aura and Drix hadn't shown up, I would have been able to recover! And you seem to forget that I had you pinned down not even a minute ago!" Twilmer shouted as she scrambled to her feet, putting away her own staff. Victoria limped over to Twilmer looking down at the ground. She felt that the loss was her fault. Twilmer sighed, patting the Weavile on the head. She knelt down and smiled, taking out a potion to heal her partner's wounds.

"I must admit that you did put up a good fight. Better then a certain other swordsman..." Zero trailed off, smirking as Drix fumed. He was about to retaliate when Aura stopped him.

"We have to get to where ever we're going and we can't get there if the two of you fight the whole time!" Aura looked crossly at Drix. He backed down with a sigh.

"Hey, Zero, where are we going, anyways?" Twilmer asked.

"We are going through Mount Coronet, which is just up ahead through that cave. There is an alter there dedicated to the creation of the Pokémon world. From there we can access the event."

"If it's that simple, then why do we need you?" Twilmer asked.

"It's simple to get there, but I have an adamant orb," Zero left it at that. Twilmer looked up at him with newfound respect. That had been an exhilarating battle, the likes of which she'd never had before. It wasn't everyday that a fellow grace master with his skills was seen. In fact, grace master was one of the less popular classes for reasons beyond Twilmer. The party filed behind Zero as he led them through the entrance of the cave. Taking the cave up to the top of Mt. Coronet was actually a lot faster than climbing the mountain itself since Mt. Coronet was designed to be virtually impenetrable so that only the top gamers could get to level 100.

Guy sighed as he watched Zero and Heat lead the crew through the tiny entrance. No one had a clear type advantage on fire, which was really a weakness the party had probably not bargained for. Now that Salamence was dead, they had an Empoleon that could probably take down heat, if it weren't for the steel type that put it on an equal level, a Vileplume that would be down in one hit, Victoria who had held up decently but was still an ice type, if Twilmer became a Pichu she was neither strong or weak against fire, Lopunny could put up a decent fight against the Rapidash, though he figured Emily23 had not focused on battle training, Trellaine's Haunter, which could be useful if he wasn't such a prankster and didn't have the bad habit of disappearing into other dimensions, and then there was his Butterfree, Caesar. Zero could probably over take them all if he wanted, though considering the fact that he could easily have done away with their leader earlier, Guy didn't think he would betray them. Still, it was good to keep an eye on the gamer.

Emily23 gasped as she entered the cave--as did the rest of the party. The tiny opening had led her to believe that the cave would continue to be tiny, but it was absolutely huge! The cavernous area had glowing mushrooms growing about so that the gamers that managed to find the entrance could pass through relatively safely--sight wise at least. "I came here to train a lot before I joined the top ten," Zero remarked, reminiscing on the past when he was a young gamer stumbling through a vast world that was still a mystery to him. His partner had been a tiny Ponyta back then that cantered about excitedly. Zero smiled as he looked over at Heat, who nuzzled his shoulder gently. His partner had really matured into a majestic, beautiful Pokémon.

They came to a boulder blocking the pathway into the rest of the cave, which was surprising to Zero as that had never been there before. "Seems our friend Satoshi has tried to keep people from following him. Heat can take care of these no problem. His hooves can break through diamonds after all."

"That's a good idea, but it's getting to be quite late in real time. Why don't we camp out here for the night?" Twilmer suggested. It had been a very eventful day for the group. They had seen an old friend leave them, survived a storm, and had met Zero. She could tell Zero and a few others were hesitant to stop, but fatigue was wearing on them and they agreed. Helium had Vileplume use petal dance to make a huge pile of petals. Heat set those on fire and the party gathered around.

Twilmer pulled out a small feather brush and ran it over Victoria's crown feathers. She hadn't taken the time to polish up her partner in quite some time. Victoria sat with her eyes closed as Twilmer paid careful attention to each pink feather. "That feels nice," Victoria sighed.

"Huh? I can still understand you as a human?" Twilmer looked shocked.

"It's not surprising if you judge how close you two are," Aura commented, stroking Sparia's soft feathers absentmindedly as the huge penguin curled up beside her, "I can understand Sparia sometimes. It comes with trust and training together mostly." Twilmer smiled and went back to taking care of Victoria, who had started nodding off. Twilmer pulled out a blanket form her inventory and draped it around Victoria's shoulders. She may have been an ice type, but she still loved to snuggle in a blanket, more for comfort than warmth.

"So Aura," Emily23 sidled up beside the swordswoman and grinned mischievously, "what's going on between you and Drix?" She asked rather bluntly.

"Nothing, I don't know what you mean," Aura huffed, pulling out a cloth. She began to polish her katanas to avoid looking the tamer in the eye.

"There's something going on between the two of you, I know it. Why else would you two disappear all the time together? And I noticed you two hanging out more often. You can tell me, Aura." Emily23 scooted closer to her, and whispered, "I wouldn't blame you, either. He's easy on the eyes--if you know what I mean." Emily23 laughed at the expression on the raven-haired woman's face. Aura sighed as she put away the cloth and sheathed her katanas. She didn't know how she managed to do it, but the tamer could always bring out information from her. She supposed it was her innocence. It was nice to have someone to confide in and she had to admit that the girl she had first labeled as ditzy and annoying had really grown on her.

"Okay, fine. I'll confide, but you tell anyone and you're ass is mine," Aura warned the giggling tamer, who nodded. Aura smiled, knowing she could trust her.

"So Guy," Helium was sitting next to the older and much more experienced herbalist, "what made you choose being an herbalist?"

"The powder aspect had to be it, though I think I've chosen the wrong job sometimes. Sometimes, I think I would have made a better grace master." To this, Twilmer perked up and turned around.

"Really?" she asked.

"Yeah, sure, why not?" Guy leaned back, closing his eyes. "But then again, I've always had a fondness for Butterfree and they work best with the herbalist class." Caesar fluttered down and landed on Guy's stomach. He smiled and rubbed his partner's head.

"You know," Helium sighed, scooting closer to Twilmer, "everyone seems to be close to their partners, but I don't really think I'm as close to my own."

"So go fix that now," Twilmer stated rather bluntly. She realized how rude this must have sounded and added, "I mean, it wouldn't hurt to try. I'll help you if you want, since mine is asleep." Helium smiled and nodded. Twilmer stood up and helped Helium to his feet. When he was standing, she didn't let go of his hand, which suited the herbalist just fine.

"Ahh, young love. It seems this party, which started out as a rather cheesy soap opera has now turned into one of those cheesy Misty Dew romance novels," Trellaine chuckled to himself as Haunter twirled overhead, laughing at some joke he had made up or something along those lines. "Hey Haunter, let's have some fun with your dream eater attack." Trellaine grinned, motioning to Guy. Haunter grinned, always ready for a good practical joke, and disappeared. "Oh he's going to not like me in the morning," Trellaine remarked to himself rather happily.

"Shouldn't someone be keeping watch?" Drix asked, looking around the party which was steadily drifting into dream land.

"I'll do it," Zero said shortly. He had been standing off from the rest of the party the entire time with his partner.

"If you're doing it, then I'm doing it too." Drix stood, walking casually over to Zero.

"You really don't trust me, do you?" Zero raised an eyebrow.

"Why should I? You're in the top ten," Drix shot back.

"So? I support Aura more then I support those bastards." Zero crossed his arms casually.

"What do you mean by that?" Drix shouted.

"Shut the hell up over there! Some of us are trying to sleep!" Aura shouted, glaring at the two men. Drix glared at Zero who looked casually ahead, ignoring the swordsman. It was going to be a long night.

ooo

End Part 47

Yes, I like those little Emily/Aura moments XD so sue me ;P no wait...don't. I'm broke xx I tried to give characters that haven't done a whole lot lately time to shine. I hoped this part came out decently now...time to wrap things up...


	48. Mists of Death

Pokémon World Online

Part 48: Mists of Death

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. Don't be fooled by the title; this isn't the end part. Anyways, this is about where the RPG this fic coincides with (though they are two different things) ended because too many of us became busy with school and such ; so this is completely new material to all the RPers who read this. Hope everyone enjoys this part as much as I enjoyed writing it

ooo

Aura stretched as she woke up, careful to not wake Sparia. The fire had long ago burned its self out and everyone was still snoozing peacefully, except Victoria. Aura figured the energetic Pokémon must have woken up early to do some training. She found it oddly cute how the Weavile had decided to make her Empoleon her rival. Rivals were always good because they forced you to push yourself to your best with friendly competition. She had had many before this whole mess had started and she had joined Twilmer's party. Drix had been one of them since every time they fought; it always ended in a tie. She glanced over the swordsman who was snoozing next to Zero and a small smile played upon her lips. She could just imagine him staying up all night to prove himself to Zero. No doubt Zero had won, not that he really cared.

She saw Zero wake up and glance up at her. He got up quietly and stretched before coming over to her. "About that deal we made," he whispered so as not to disturb the others.

"Forget it," Aura waved it away, "I meant it when I said I'd do it."

"Hmm, well, okay then." Zero walked away, making a clicking noise with his tongue. Heat's ears perked up at the sound and he cantered over to Zero. The fire horse snorted and shook his head. Zero took out a brush and began running it against Heat's neck. Heat relaxed, enjoying the feeling of the bristles. Aura sighed, sitting down and hugging her knees to her. She couldn't believe what she had agreed to, considering the circumstances surrounding the reasons why she detested it, but it was for Twilmer and the fate of PWO. Still...it didn't mean she had to enjoy this decision--not that it would ever possibly come into play--did it?

ooo

Twilmer woke to find Victoria grinning at her. "Well, good morning there," Twilmer grinned, rubbing Victoria's head. Twilmer checked the game clock and panicked. They had slept way too long. "Guys, get up NOW!" Twilmer shouted.

Aura, who was already up, had Sparia douse everyone with water pulse. "You heard the woman; up and at 'em!" Everyone groaned as they were woken by cold water and loud noises.

"YOU!" Guy jumped up, glaring at Trellaine.

"Me," Trellaine said merrily.

"Don't you 'Me' me! You and that Haunter of yours were messing with my dreams, weren't you? I don't mind when you simply eat my dreams making me confused, but having your Haunter then use nightmare is just beyond cruel!" Guy was steaming mad.

"Did Haunter use nightmare? I didn't tell him to. Nice touch, old friend," Trellaine grinned as Haunter floated around the mage playfully.

"I don't want to ever find myself wearing a pink dress and confessing my love to Helium ever again. Do I make myself clear?" Guy glared. His glare faltered as he heard Twilmer and Emily23 burst into laughter. "And just what is so funny?" he yelled.

"Oh god, I needed that laugh." Twilmer was holding her sides and Emily23 was wiping a tear away from her eye. "Maybe I'm interfering with something here." Twilmer winked at Helium who was already beet red.

"Alright, fun time's over," Zero announced, clearing his throat.

"I give the orders around here," Twilmer said angrily, "though I do agree that we've been here too long. Lead the way." Everyone filed behind Zero as he had Heat use his hooves to smash through the boulder that had been blocking the way into the cave beneath Mt. Coronet's peaks. Heat's hooves were tougher then diamonds--being a Rapidash--so he was able to make quick work of the obstacle.

The group filed through the opening and an audible gasp was heard. The inside of Mt. Coronet was absolutely huge! The ceiling of the cavern reached so high above them that they could not see. There was a stream that winded throughout the cavern. It was shallow enough that they could easily wade across it if need be. The walls of the cave were oddly shaped so that ledges jutted out in every angle and upon each ledge was a cluster of the green, glowing mushrooms so that he entire cavern was filled with an ethereal green glow. The only sound besides that of the party was water dripping down from stalactites far above them. Stalagmites were scattered oddly about the ground making beautiful, random patterns.

"Now you can see why I used to always train here," Zero said. Heat's flames lit the cavern even more so that the party could see the beautiful limestone beneath their feet.

"I think I know where I'll be doing more of my own training," Twilmer commented. The ledges made perfect places to practice speed and agility. She could see Victoria was sizing up the ledges; her legs itching to jump on them.

"For a place made of bits of data, this sure is beautiful," Guy commented, Cesar flying about uncertainly; not used to dark, cave areas. "Oh here, perch on my head." The Butterfree happily oblidged.

"Dream made this world more realistic. I suppose it not only affected the Pokémon, but the landscape as well." Trellaine pulled out his staff, not feeling comfortable in such a large, open, dark area without it.

"Look!" Emily23 pointed as a Paras scuttled by them. The Paras had glowing green mushrooms on its back just like those decorating the walls.

Zero walked up to the Paras and patted it on the head. "How're you doing, Pierre?"

The Paras looked up at him and sighed, "I could be doing better. This idiotic gamer with no respect at all came barging in. He destroyed some of the stalagmites around here, which I did NOT appreciate."

"He talks?" Drix raised an eyebrow.

"He talks?" Pierre spat back.

"Touché," Drix laughed.

"Pierre the Paras." Twilmer smacked her forehead at the terrible pun.

"Alright, this Paras is part of the event, in a way. His job is to help lead gamers through the maze of the inner caves to get to the top safely," Zero explained.

"It would be funny if he had a French accent, too," Emily23 giggled.

"Always a funny one in every party." Pierre rolled his eyes. He had obviously heard every joke like this in the book and it tired him. "Now come along. We don't have all day. Normally I'm supposed to ask if one of your party is at level 99 and if there is no one, I take you down a false path, but lately I've noticed that I can control myself more. I sense you guys are troubled by something." Pierre glanced over his should as best he could with a Paras anatomy as he lead them through the cave, staying close to the stream.

"Yeah, that rude guy you mentioned earlier is Satoshi Tajiri, I assume, and he's out to-" Pierre cut Twilmer short.

"It wasn't a guy, it was some female, though as gamers go, it could have been a male playing as a female," he rolled his eyes.

"A girl?" Twilmer held her chin thoughtfully.

"Anyways, as Twilmer was saying," Aura picked up where she left off, "Satoshi is up to no good. We need to access the event to stop him."

"And the reason you have more control over yourself, Sir Paras," Emily23 added, "is because Pokémon have become real because of this mean lady named Dream. She did something that made PWO become real."

"Sir Paras? I think I like the sound of that," Pierre chuckled.

"Don't be flattered by that. She still calls me Miss Pichu," Twilmer rolled her eyes.

"You're not going to lead us down a stray path, are you?" Helium asked frantically.

Pierre had a good laugh at this. "Oh no, I won't do that. I care about the fate of this world too, you know. After all, I'm part of it." Pierre stopped at a fork in the road. The stream split into two directions, but there were three paths. one could only be accessed by wading across the stream. Each pathway was huge, though. Twilmer found herself wondering just how big this area was.

"You remember this part well, don't you?" Pierre asked Zero.

"Ah yes, the memories," Zero visibly shuddered. "Okay guys, once we cross this stream here, you cannot look back. Pierre conveniantly forgot to warn me of that last time." Zero rolled his eyes.

"I didn't think you, of all people, would look back. Now come along and can someone carry me? I'm not exactly built to wade across this. The water'd come over my head, you see." Pierre coughed, slightly embarrassed. Zero picked up the Paras and began wading. The rest of the party followed suit. Twilmer took off her white, royal cape so she wouldn't get it wet. Guy, Trellaine, and Helium lifted the hems of their own robes so that they wouldn't get wet. Heat backed up and charged full speed forward, clearing the stream in a mighty leap. Victoria watched with obvious envy. The stream was no problem to Sparia, who splashed about happily. It had been quite some time since she was last able to be in the water. Aura felt slightly guilty about this. "Don't forget to not look back. No matter what we cannot turn back now." Pierre warned.

As they continued forward, Emily23 noticed that the headband she was wearing that had ears that resembled her Lopunny felt oddly lighter. She pulled it off and to her dismay discovered that one of her ears had fallen off. "Oh no, one of the ears fell off!" Emily23 looked around franticly.

"This world must be becoming more realistic if out gear can become damaged now," Aura pondered aloud. As a clothing designer in real life, this possibility intrigued her. She had once been approached to be employed by PWO corp. to design outfits and gear for them, but this was after what had happened to Madeline and she refused to do anything associated with that corporation again.

"I have to find it! This headband cost me a lot of money." Emily23, before anyone could stop her or realized what had happened, looked behind her to see where her ear had gone.

"DAMN IT! NO!" Zero shouted. A hush fell over the group as Emily23 shrunk back, quickly turning around. "That won't help now; it's too late."

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!" Emily23 started to panic and began to tear up.

"Damn it, Emily, can't you do anything right?" Drix shouted at her, which just caused her to start sniffling and crying even more.

"Drix, that's not fucking helping. It's okay, hun, though that was a very foolish thing. Everyone makes mistakes," Aura sighed, taking the small teenage girl in her arms and hugging her tightly.

"Oh no, not again," Pierre sighed. A wind began to blow slightly, which was quite impossible considering that they were in a cave. A white mist began to float towards them. "Run! Don't just stand here looking at it!" Pierre ordered. Everyone started to run as fast as they could. Pierre had crawled up onto Heat since his own legs weren't enough to keep up with the group. "Whatever you do, do NOT touch that mist."

They kept up the pace as Pierre told Heat where to go. It was a rather funny sight to see a Paras riding a Rapidash, but there was no time for such levity as the mist picked up pace as well, creeping towards them faster and faster. "What happens is the mist touches us?" Emily23 asked. Aura was running beside her protectively. In an odd way, the tamer reminded her of Madeline. She supposed it was the air of innocence...

"Usually it was death for the rest of the day, which meant you only got one chance at the event per day and if you failed then you couldn't play or even train for the rest of the day, but since you said this world is becoming real, I don't really want to find out." Pierre clung tightly to Heat, glad that he had known Zero and the Rapidash for quite some time so the Rapidash trusted him or else this would have been a very bad situation to be in for a bug type.

They made it out of the pathway and into an even bigger cavern. This one was huge and from where they were, the party couldn't even see the opposite end--though the fact that their only light source was glowing mushrooms and Heat, this wasn't surprising. "Let me try something." Trellaine turned and spun his staff, creating a wall of ice. He floated backwards for a bit (Twilmer muttering 'hacker' under her breath) watching as the mist passed through the ice as if it weren't even there. "Well scratch that idea," he frowned.

Victoria turned to see if she could do better, but Twilmer grabbed her by the arm and pulled her. "Don't even try. Let's just hope our stamina holds out." Victoria nodded reluctantly and fell back in with the hurrying party. "Where's this mist coming from?" she wondered aloud.

"From the master of the underworld. From a creature so evil that the creation prophecy left him out. The very roar of this creature can suck the soul out of you. This mist is coming from the soul guiding Pokémon: Giratina." Pierre looked warily behind them as the mist accelerated to keep up with their brisk pace.

"Giratina," Emily23 whispered. As a tamer, she had done a lot of study on Pokémon in guide books in real life when she had breaks in class or when she should have been reading her text for homework. Giratina was jealous of Dialga and Palkia because he had been left out of the prophecy of creation. In the beginning it was said that Arceus appeared from a churning turmoil of chaos and created Dialga to begin the flow of time that made all things possible and Palkia to use the matter from the churning turmoil of chaos to create the universe. Arceus then created three beings, Azelf, Uxie, and Mesprit, to create law. The five beings gathered and wished for spirit to form, but it had been Giratina, Arceus' first actual creation, that had led the souls to their bodies. Giratina had been in charge of monitoring the souls and guiding them to their final resting place with Arceus when the body had ceased to function. Arceus soon realized that souls should govern their selves and that Giratina was not needed. Needless to say, Giratina wasn't happy at all about this cut. She remembered that the Arceus they knew was actually a glitch and was not a part of the actual prophecy since Satoshi never created the Arceus from the legend...or she supposed at least. Who knew what the mad man was capable of?

Emily23 snapped out of her thoughts as they hear a roar. The roar wasn't loud, but she could feel a chill that hit her down to her bones. She shivered involuntarily. "Oh shit, I never met Giratina when I was here last time. I rode on Heat to escape."

"You actually completed the Dialga and Palkia event? I didn't think you were of high enough level yet," Aura looked at him, raising an eyebrow.

"No, but I asked Pierre just to show me the area because I was curious and he agreed." Zero looked back for a moment. "Oh hell, there's no way we can out run that mist!"

"We can at least try!" Emily23 shouted, wanting to redeem herself for her past mistake. She charged forward as fast as she could, Lopunny jumping to keep up.

"Vileplume!" Helium shouted. The Pokémon was pooped and not able to keep up. Heat snorted and ran over to the Vileplume. With Pierre and Helium's help, they quickly got the large flower onto Heat's back. They continued forward, but they had lost too much precious time. The mist was upon them and there was nothing they could do.

"If this is the end, then I'm glad you guys helped me make it this far. I couldn't have asked for a better party!" Twilmer shouted while running forward, but she was too tired and stumbled. Helium caught her and she stayed in the herbalist's arms.

Aura stopped as well, turning to face the mist. "If this is the end, then I'll be able to see her again, at least." Aura tried to think of a positive for this situation, though even with that thought, she was not ready to die.

"Oh fuck," Drix sighed. "See you soon, Salamence."

"This is all my fault," Emily23 sniffled. Aura held her hand, giving her strength. Drix walked over to her and grabbed her other hand, much to Emily23's shock.

"We're a party and we're in this together." Drix smirked, and then turned his gaze to Aura, who smiled at him.

"I always knew I'd die like this," Guy humphed, folding his arms across his chest.

"Bottom's up." Trellaine grinned jovially.

"You're sure awfully happy," Guy raised an eyebrow.

"Why be sad when there's nothing we can do. I'd rather embrace death like an old friend then cower from him like a child who's about to be punished by its mother." Trellaine pulled out an orange. Guy just shook his head.

"It could be worse," Pierre sighed.

"How?" Zero asked as the mist came upon them.

"I could have been created as a Magikarp," Pierre joked as the mist overtook them.

Then everything went dark and they knew no more.

ooo

end part 48

Don't you just hate me for these cliff hangers P I wasn't going to put one, but then I decided what the heck. So, is the end for the party? I could be evil and end the story here, you know XD but I won't be. I promise to bring you part 49 soon. flees to write it


	49. The Soul Guiding Wanderer

Pokémon World Online

Part 49: The Soul Guiding Wanderer

Disclaimer: Pierre the Paras is my idea XD but everything else is copyright to whoever owns it. The Pokémon World Online idea belongs to me. I hope you enjoy Sorry for the cliffhanger last time. Now to reward you, you get a flashback part XD nah, just one or two. Am I not just the best ;) It's odd looking back and seeing how the characters have grown and matured sniff I'm like a proud parent.

ooo

Twilmer opened her eyes slowly. She was lying on her back, but all she could see was white all around her. She stood and looked down to notice white swirling mist below her as well. "Oh shit," Twilmer cursed as she took a shaky step forward in case there was nothing below her white boot. She let out a sigh of relief when she felt something under her foot and continued forward less cautiously. She had no idea where she was or what exactly was going on, but she was tired of feeling scared and was just plain irritated now. "Am I dead or what? This is like with Arceus back on Firewall," she grumped to no one in particular. She wasn't exactly sure if she had died or not back then either. "Odd how everything was black with the god of all Pokémon and everything is a misty white with the devil Pokémon," Twilmer mused.

Despite the fact that she was all alone, she wasn't in a hurry. After all, if she were dead, she'd have an eternity to find the others. That and she was just plain irritated at the situation. "I know! JEFFREY!" Twilmer shouted. "If I'm alive, he'll surely answer my call...unless he's out or something," Twilmer sighed, her plan suddenly not seeming quite as genius. With a sigh, she continued forward. No matter what direction she walked or for how long, she was still completely surrounded by white mist. She tried to keep from looking down since walking on no clear ground made her uneasy.

On and on she walked until she became quite tired. She sat down on the ground (for lack of a better word to call what she was walking upon) and still couldn't see anything. With a sigh, she rested her arms on her legs and buried her head in her arms.

ooo

Emily23 woke up and discovered herself to be utterly alone. Lopunny was nowhere to be seen and neither was Aura or Drix. She got up and hugged herself to keep warm as she was unusually cold. She wasn't sure what had happened, but she was filled with the knowledge that it was her fault. She hung her head and began wandering around. The mist swirled around her and she wasn't even sure if she was moving, but she knew that she had to find the others...or at the very least, her partner. "I have to fix this. It's all my fault," she sighed.

As soon as she spoke, she heard a soft, low wail, musical in quality. It was a haunting and sad melody that told the tale of much loss and sorrow. She began to run towards the source of the sound. It steadily became louder as she ran forward. She wasn't sure what was making the song, but she had to find out because maybe it was someone who could set their situation right. She saw a bright light and ran towards that. As soon as she entered the light, she felt a cool breeze hit her face. She squinted as sunlight hit her face. She was shocked to discover that she was in a field full of cherry blossom trees. Just where had she gotten herself this time? The sun appeared to be permanently setting; permanently fixed in the end time of the day.

She walked forward, not remembering seeing any place like this in the game, though she honestly hadn't been playing long before the urgency of this mission she had unwittingly became a part of consumed her time on PWO. She had no idea that when she decided to tag along with the admin all that time ago that she would face so many dangers and end up in a race against time. Though she never regretted anything as through the encounter, she had become stronger and tamed and raised a healthy, strong Pokémon. Her partner had also evolved and had become much more battle oriented if the situation should arrive. She had matured as well. When she had started the game, she was such a n00b, using chat speak all the time. She sighed, remembering when she had first met Twilmer.

"OMIGOD OMIGOD OMG!!11 Itsa Pichu!" Twilmer saw a girl in what appeared to be a Bunneary suit running towards her.

The girl then picked her up and squeezed her."Bones...crushed...HP...lowering..." Twilmer coughed. Twilmer growled and let out a discharge of static electricity, which caused the rabid fan girl to drop her. "Just what do you think you're doing, crushing an admin with those arms of death? I could've fainted form such a damaging hug! I should up your warning level for that!" Twilmer scolded, wagging her finger at the Bunneary-suit clad gamer.

"Aww, a talking Pichu that thinks it's an admin. That's a game feature that I've never seen before. LOL" the girl went to hug Twilmer again, but she managed the agility of a grace master in her pudgy Pichu body to dodge it.

"I should send a request to headquarters to model a boss after you. I am an administrator for Pokémon World Online. I am the great Twilmer, as I'm sure you've heard of me, and I will not be spoken to with such n00bish speech. I just look like a Pichu because of a glitch," Twilmer tried to explain over the girly skwees that were coming from the gamer.

"Sure you are misses Pichu. I bet I'll be the first tamer ever to tame a talking Pokémon! Come on, Bunneary, we've got some work to do!" The girl and her Bunneary got on opposite ends of Twilmer.

"This is not going to end well," Twilmer's ears drooped.

"Twilmer, is that you?" Helium's voice came from her right. Twilmer's ear perked back up as she called over to the herbalist. "Oh, you must be a tamer. I'm Helium and I'm an herbalist. This is Gloom," Helium introduced himself.

"I am Emily23 and I'm the best tamer in Cobalt. I've already tamed all the basic Pokémon in this area and have distributed most of them. This is my partner, Bunneary. As you may be able to tell, I got the 4th generation booster pack recently and am now able to use 4th generation Pokémon and items, hence my garb." Emily23 turned, showcasing her outfit. "It only cost me 2000 poke which is a steal!"

"Only 2000? I should talk to the higher-ups about raising prices on ridiculous outfits such as this," Twilmer pondered with a paw to her chin.

"What did you say?" Emily23 glared at Twilmer and brushed a floppy ear out of her face.

"She didn't mean anything by it," Helium got between the two before the situation could get worse. "She's just kind of testy after being transformed into a Pichu."

"Oh, so she is an admin turned Pichu? That's odd, I've never heard of a glitch doing something like this." Emily23 put a finger to her mouth as she pondered.

"Yes, and now she's forming a party to help her solve the mystery of this glitch and return her to her former self." Helium explained.

"I can talk for myself," Twilmer grumbled.

"I see! In that case, Emily23 would be happy to join your party. If the glitch is turning players into Pokémon, then I want to be there to see it. I just love Pokémon and it's why I became a tamer." Emily23 smiled at the two.

"I don't want her on our party. I barely want you on my party. You can't just invite her," Twilmer turned away from Helium.

"Oh come on, she might be useful." Helium smiled at her gently and allowed Twilmer to climb up his arm and ride on his shoulder as they continued their way through Cobalt.

"Yeah, she'll be useful if we ever need a n00b to admin translator," Twilmer sighed to herself.

Had she really been such a n00b back then? Then again, she supposed everyone had been a n00b when they first started. She laughed at the memory. As soon as she did so, the ground began to rumble periodically as if some huge creature was approaching. Emily23 stood and turned to see a shadow coming towards her. She tried to open her inventory and retrieve her taming pole just in case, but she found that she couldn't. Without her partner and inventory, she was rather helpless.

ooo

Helium opened his eyes, finding himself in a swirling void. "Twilmer?" he called out, not seeing her or her Weavile partner anywhere. Vileplume was nowhere to be seen either. Was he dead? This would mean no more soccer--not that he ever really enjoyed the sport--and no more school. He had stayed at school over the summer to get some extra study in as well as play on the soccer team, but so far he'd done nothing but play PWO and summer was nearly over. He wondered what Ben and Jason thought of him being online this whole time. It was also unusual how they hadn't even tried to get him off of the computer considering he had been on it the last several days straight.

Helium shook his head, snapping out of the thoughts of real life. He looked around and noticed that there was a figure in the distance. He walked over towards the figure and almost cried in relief when he saw Twilmer. "Twilmer!" he shouted. Twilmer raised her head and barely had time to react before Helium had glomped her.

"You sure are bold today. Can't say I don't like it," Twilmer laughed.

"Twil, do you think that this is the end of the line?" Helium asked, adjusting himself so that he was sitting beside Twilmer.

"Don't call me Twil. I don't know what this place is, but it certainly isn't the game anymore." Twilmer sighed. "If we're truly dead, or if this is some kind of purgatory or whatnot, I just wanted to let you know that I am fond of you, you know." Twilmer cleared her throat. "But don't let that get to your head or anything."

"This is sudden," Helium smiled, pleasantly surprised.

"I've actually wanted to tell you that when the situation got better, but it doesn't look like that are going to happen any time soon. I mean, I know you knew that, but I had to say it."

"its funny thinking of how much you disliked me when we first met that you would come to be fond of me now," Helium sighed.

"It's not that I disliked you; it's more that I found you completely useless for my quest." Twilmer closed her eyes.

Helium laughed, "You know, the first thing you said to me was asking if I was gay."

"Oh yeah, I had forgotten about that," Twilmer said. "You know, you were one of the first gamers I found completely trust worthy without prior knowledge of. Like Aura; everyone has heard of her and her talents--or most gamers have--but you were this little nobody herbalist. Err...no offense."

"None taken," Helium smiled.

"Though if I didn't know you were straight, I would think you were gay," Twilmer said matter-of-factly. It wasn't like her to sugar coat the details.

"I wouldn't blame you, really. My two friends from real life thought I was gay once. I'm just not afraid to hide who I really am."

"Hey, look!" Twilmer stood, pointing to a small point of light. "That must be the light at the end of the tunnel or something like that! Come on!" Twilmer pulled Helium up as the two ran towards the light.

ooo

Emily23 stood tall as the shadow approached her. If this was the end, she wanted to be strong and face it head on. She didn't want to be a little coward anymore as she had once been. The shadow stopped right before her and from it rose a giant beast. The beast appeared to have an exoskeleton of sorts. Its wings were made of pure shadow that swirled and churned with each flap. It had six legs and a mighty roar that shook her to her very soul. "Giratina," she breathed.

"It's been a long time since someone activated my event. I think only one other person has come face to face with me." Giratina smiled at her. As dangerous looking as he appeared, he had a comforting voice and he had a warm, friendly presence. "Do not be afraid. I am not a Pokémon version of Satan as I know it is rumored I am. I am merely a guide to souls that has been doomed to wander aimlessly without a purpose."

"That's terrible," Emily23 frowned.

"Such is my fate." Giratina turned, watching as the sun rose higher in the sky so that it bathed the red flowers below in its life-giving glow. "Every living creature has a soul. At one time, I was to guide these souls throughout their lives so that I could lead them to an eternal resting with Arceus when they perished...or so the legend goes. As I used to be bits of data, I can't say I am actually part of this legend at all. I may be real now, but that does not mean that I am the Giratina of legend. I was born bits of computer data and am thus I wander about more aimlessly than ever before."

"You have to have some greater purpose in life then that," Emily23 protested.

"Sweet of you to think that, child." Giratina turned as a light swirled next to Emily23. The light began to fade, revealing Helium and Twilmer, who were squinting in the bright light of the sun.

"Helium! Miss Pichu!" Emily23 happily hugged her friends. Twilmer let her for a moment before shoving her away.

"What the hell is that?!" Twilmer pointed at Giratina, shrinking back, looking around for something to use as a weapon.

"Don't be afraid. He won't hurt us." Emily23 smiled.

"How can you say that? He has killed everyone else who's looked back!"

"Allow me to explain myself," Giratina sighed, his voice sounded particularly weary, "I do not kill those who look back. To look back is human, but the gamers see this huge mist coming towards them and run, knowing that it is I who approaches them. They fear this so called demon Pokémon named Giratina. None of them, save for one brave soul, has ever faced the mist as your party has done. They cannot face the errors that they have made and they do not have the guts to face a rumor of fear. I would never harm those willing to face their wrongs and put aside their fear to jump into the unknown. I admire those with adventurous hearts."

"Where are the others?" Helium asked timidly.

"They are still where they were when I overtook you. As a soul guider without a place anymore, I can only converse with those souls free of in game wrong doings. Every member of your party has done some wrong or broken some game rule. I left them where they were for they would only complicate matters. I only wished to speak with those who have clean records."

"I have a clean record?" Twilmer looked surprised.

"Yes. You act tough, but you have never done an actual wrong that I can detect. Your admiration for this game and hero worship of Satoshi Tajiri have been major contributing factors, though. Drix has stolen money from other gamers and illegally got a Bagon as a partner when he started this game. He has also lied very badly. Trellaine hacks into the game many times and, if you will, plays god with other gamers and their partners. Zero abandoned the top ten and has gone back on his word many times which has led to the death of many gamers, the most recent of which is the death of the majority of the ten. Aura brutally murdered Leslie Swan. Pierre--while I do not usually judge Pokémon--has tricked players out of items that cause drunkenness in game. The little parasite is an alcoholic in your terms. The rest of your Pokémon it is not for me to judge so they have been left alive and unharmed in the cave. As for the one called Guy, he has done, though unwittingly, perhaps the worst evil of the bunch. It is because of him that the one known as Dream set upon her purpose and became the evil that you know today." Giratina finished.

"What? What do you mean it is Guy's fault that Dream is who she is today?" Twilmer asked, shocked.

"I will show you only if you will listen to what I have to say afterwards." Giratina made sure each of the three nodded before folding his wings, using the red spikes on them to connect with the trio's consciousness to portray to them past events.

She gasped and the elder man looked up at her. "I wasn't aware anyone else was ther-oh for god's sake, put some clothes on. They're cheap enough in this game and it shouldn't be that hard to find a pair." the man shielded his eyes.

She looked down and discovered that she was naked. Wait, that man had talked of the game. Was she in Pokémon World Online? She saw a small bag lying beside her from where she was sitting in the grass. She opened it and the inventory menu popped up. She saw that she had only one outfit. It was an out comprised mostly of black lace and she adored it. She put it on and examined herself in the small lake beside the road. "I'm in the game," she whispered as if saying it any louder would cause everything to disappear.

"Well, if you logged on you are. Oh, you must be a new player, then. I am GuyRandamas, but you may call me Guy." The male gamer held out his hand and she gratefully accepted it. "What's your screen name?"

"My screen name?" she considered this. What was her name? Instantly it came to her. "I am Dream." she replied simply, turning to face Guy. Cesar fluttered its wings unrestlessly and seemed to fear Dream.

"Dream, eh? I would have assumed that screen name would already be taken. Anyways, I'm an herbalist. I'm a bit down on my PWO money, so I decided to take up a tutoring job. It amuses me how that kid has more money than several older players put together. Then again, newbie missions do tend to pay higher. I am rambling, though," Guy laughed heartily. Dream noticed a butter knife at his side in a sheath and shook her head, laughing as well. This was a dream come true.

"My dream came true recently. I wish more people could experience this feeling of having their greatest dream come true." Dream looked at herself in the lake. She looked like a perfect combination of her old character, Thorn, and her human self, Elvda.

"Well, why don't you do just that?" Guy suggested. Dream looked up at him confused. "Why don't you help others have their dreams come true, well in the game at least?"

"That's a really great idea!" Dream clapped her hands together, a grin crossing her face.

"Oh, look at the time, I must be going. It was nice meeting you, Dream." Guy waved as he turned on the spot and disappeared. Dream stared at the spot he had been and laughed gaily. She was in her dream world. She was part of Pokémon World Online. She was free of real life. How could she not spread this joy to others? She twirled on the spot, dancing in a state of pure ecstasy. Several Pidgey flew over head and a Rattata ran through the field in front of her. She had never felt so alive.

"I don't understand..." Emily23 looked over at Twilmer, who seemed to be deep in thought.

"Dream vowed to make the dreams of all she knew a reality due to Guy and it is because of this that she turned out as, 'scuse my harsh word, mental as she is now. It was through her desire to make the dreams of others come true that she learned how to manipulate the flow of data and ultimately led her to make PWO real. While it is not truly his fault, I know he wishes to take down Dream himself, which means he feels partially guilty."

"This is just too confusing. Why is this even important? Dream hasn't given us any problems lately," Twilmer said.

"But that does not mean that she hasn't been following you. She wants to face Satoshi as much as you do. She also still hates you, Twilmer. Anyways, enough of that. Come walk with me. We still have so much to discuss and so little time to do it in." Giratina began to walk forward. For such a massive creature, his steps were rather light.

"What do we have to discuss?" Twilmer looked up at the beast as she and the others jogged alongside him to try and keep up.

"It is not for me to decide what happens to your soul or to even guide it, but that does not mean that I cannot help it. Satoshi has taken control of the one who rules over space; Palkia. I do not know what he hopes to accomplish, but I do know that you will have to seek the assistance of Dialga at the temple on top of this mountain. I'm sure Zero could have told you that, but what he couldn't probably tell you is that you are in no way to harm Palkia or Dialga. If one of them is severely injured, the risk that the very fabric of what they control could unravel is too high. If that happens, then the world or universe or what have you as we know it could be destroyed. All those lost souls will have no way to reach Arceus if this happens." Giratina sighed, looking up as if he could see something the others could not.

"What happened to the days when things were simple and all we were doing was chasing a glitch?" Twilmer sighed.

"Oh my gosh!" Helium suddenly shouted and ran to a poster that was pasted to the window of one of the buildings.

"You're starting to sound like Emily23," Twilmer looked over at him disapprovingly.

"I didn't know that Misty Dew had a PWO account, look at this poster!" Helium exclaimed. Twilmer eyed the poster, which was an advertisement for a Misty Dew event that was to be held the next day.

"Oh yeah, she's one of our sponsors. She's going on some book signing tour this summer, so we're holding an event each day in a different town to help advertise. Ugh, I can't stand those gushy romance novels that she writes. Romance is such a waste of good gaming time," Twilmer sniffed.

"You just haven't given them enough chance. I'm sure you'd like them if you..." Helium stopped, blushing, because Twilmer was giving him a funny look.

"Don't tell me you actually read those stupid things. Good lord, I thought you were pathetic before, but this takes the cake." Twilmer literally fell of Helium's shoulder because she was laughing so hard. Victoria caught her because she had such fast reflexes. Twilmer regained her composure and climbed back up Helium's shoulder. "Okay, I'm good. Man, I needed that laugh," Twilmer sighed. The bruise on her side began to hurt as the laughter had disturbed it.

"Miss Pichu, be nice to Helium. I read those kinds of books too, and they are quite good. Sometimes they make you lol and other times you just feel the 3," Emily23 sighed as a misty look came over her eyes as if she were imagining herself as the main character of one of those novels. Bunneary had the same dreamy look in her eyes as she clasped her paws in front of her face. Max yawned.

"Woman, if you speak l33t to me one more time, I swear I'll...oh forget it, it's just not worth it anymore," Twilmer sighed, clutching at the bruise at her side.

"What's with all these flashbacks?" Twilmer raised an eyebrow.

"It's typical when a soul is separated from its body. The memories connect it to the life it had and so flashbacks are actually quite common," Giratina explained.

"Times may have been simple back then, but if we hadn't come to the point where we are now, then all of that would have been destroyed for sure." Helium turned to face Twilmer.

"And you'd still be a Pichu, Miss Pichu," Emily23 laughed.

"Well what are we doing waiting around here? Let's go!" Twilmer snapped to her senses. "Wait, how do we get back?"

"I am a soul guider, but frankly, I am not allowed to guide your souls." Giratina turned looking up at the sky. "It is as he commanded."

Twilmer tapped her foot impatiently. "What if I want you to guide my soul? Wouldn't it be wrong for you to deny my soul of what it wants?"

"I'm not sure that's how it works," Giratina said thoughtfully.

"Screw what you're sure of. We have to go kick Satoshi and Dream's asses and we need to do it fast. As a former admin, I command you to listen!" Twilmer was very rude when she was impatient.

"Fine," Giratina smiled in amusement. He stretched his wings as far as they could go. Twilmer, Emily23, and Helium rose into the air. Giratina began flying upward, the three rising up and following behind. "I'll lead you to the world of the living. As soon as you reach the bright light, you should wake up." As soon as the words had left his mouth, the ground below them began to rumble and giant fireballs began falling from the sky. "That's Arceus!"

"Why's he firing at us?" Helium asked as a fireball barely missed him.

"I'm breaking the contract by guiding your souls back to the world of the living," Giratina shouted over the loud rumble. "Hold on!" They dodged fireballs as Giratina flew upward. He used his grand wings to block a few as they approached, though the constant battering of fireballs was tiring Giratina out. He pushed forward, every muscle in his body screaming as he fought his way towards the land of the living. Finally there was a light. "Go!" He shouted, using his wings to block a few more fireballs as he guided Twilmer, Helium, and Emily23 over to the light.

"What about you? You're hurt," Emily23 frowned.

"Don't worry about me. I have no purpose and my life really isn't of any importance in the grand scheme of things; unlike yours. I'm just glad you guys survived." Giratina was hit with several more fire balls and he began to fall.

"No!" Emily23 shouted, tears falling from her eyes.

"I'm just glad that someone has shown remorse for me. Now go!" Giratina used the last of his strength to send their spirits into the light. The three watched below as Giratina's being began to fade away. They heard a soft cry before the light consumed everything and they were whisked away...

ooo

"Ugh," Aura sat up, holding her head. "Did I have too much to drink again?" The others all seemed to have similar headaches as they sat up. Aura barely had time to react before a large penguin glomped her.

"Are we alive?" Emily23 asked, looking at her brown gloved hands, turning them this way and that. Lopunny bounded over and jumped up and down in joy.

"Only one way to find out." Drix grinned mischievously before pinching Aura on the butt.

"OW! You ass hole!" Aura took her katana and threw it at him. It hit Drix and he fell back, clutching his stomach.

"Yeah," he wheezed, "we're awake."

"That was rather bizarre," Guy rubbed his forehead as he stood, Cesar fluttering excitedly around his head.

"Anyways, it looks like the mist is gone. I guess maybe you guys were resurrected, but that doesn't explain why I died too," Pierre held a claw thoughtfully to where his chin would be if only he had one.

"Alright, we're almost at the exit. We better go," Zero said, standing up and rubbing Heat's neck affectionately.

"Yeah, let's go. We're almost at the end. Come on guys," Twilmer commanded. They were almost at the time temple that would lead them to Satoshi and the final battle. She took a deep breath as they walked towards the exit. They had come so far that they couldn't give up now. At first she had simply been gathering party members to help her fix a glitch. Those party members had become some of the best friends she had ever had. Then Satoshi, Dream, and PWO corp. became things that they had to defeat. Twilmer gripped her staff and looked forward determinedly. They could do this; they had to.

ooo

End part 49

Looking back at the old chapters makes me very nostalgic. Next time is the Time temple thank you for reading


	50. End Times

Pokémon World Online

Part 50: End Times

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. It's been a long road, my friends. Finally we're at the time temple. I hope you enjoy this part :) And because I'm a dork, this part was written while listening to Digimon OSTs :3 I love the rock songs XD

ooo

"There it is," Zero motioned as they stepped out of the cave. The sky was dark and a full moon was high above them. It was nice to be outside again, Twilmer had to admit. The temple stood ancient and proud very close to the edge. This made her slightly nervous. The temple its self was rather astounding. It rose so high above their heads that they could barely see the spires that decorated the roof. The temple was brown with blue stained glass windows that, despite being dusty, still shone a radiant blue in the moonlight. A giant, fancy clock with roman numerals was perched right above where the door should have been.

"How are we supposed to get in here?" Twilmer asked, looking at Zero.

"Hell if I know. I've never actually done the event before," Zero said, examining the building.

"What about you, hacker?" Twilmer asked Trellaine.

"I really only helped with the coding in areas for the first 251 Pokémon. I daresay that I know nothing about this place." Trellaine walked forward, running a hand over the cool stone of the temple.

"Does anyone know how we can get in here?" Twilmer grumped. Everyone shook their heads. "I guess we'll have to try and find it."

"Well, it's been fun you guys, but this is where I have to leave you," Pierre nodded to Heat, who snorted.

"You have to go?" Emily23 asked sadly.

"Yeah, I wasn't meant to stay here for the event and I rather like my safety, thank you. No offense, but you guys are danger targets." Pierre turned, "Zero, you'll have to come back and tell me how it turned out."

"Later." Zero rolled his eyes. "Coward," he mumbled. Thunder rumbled overhead and a small downpour began to fall.

"Oh not again. I am sick of rain," Aura sighed.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Trellaine asked Guy as Haunter floated overhead.

"No," Guy said shortly.

"I didn't think so." Trellaine smiled. "This is the same storm as before."

"What?" Twilmer looked at him right before a lightning bolt nearly singed her. Twilmer jumped back and looked around.

"There!" Emily23 pointed. They all turned to see a familiar face smirking down at them.

"Damn it, Elra!" Twilmer shouted, stepping forward, Victoria right behind her. "We're on an important mission and have no time for you!"

"Oh I think you have time for me," Elra pulled out a lightening staff, having abandoned her old bubble rod long ago. "Vaporeon, you know what to do." Vaporeon nodded and began calling to the sky. Vaporeon began dancing elegantly about the two of them. "You see, there is a hefty bounty placed on your head. I also can't help but want to be the one who turns my old rival in. You never were much of a rival, though, and you never managed to beat me once. I promise to make this as slow and painful as possible." Elra smirked, bringing up her lightening rod. Vaporeon called to the sky once more and a heavy rainfall soaked the battlefield.

"Rain dance," Twilmer almost cursed herself. How could she not have seen this coming? She knew Elra had been working on a storm strategy when they first met. Elra and Twilmer had at one time been friends, but certain circumstances had led them to drift apart. Namely Twilmer becoming a moderator all that time ago...and the fact that Twilmer had started thinking that Elra was actually a man that had created a female character...

"I bet you never thought about this move," Elra laughed as she held her staff forward and ran faster than the eye could see. By doing this, she created copies of herself made of pure electric energy. Elra stopped running and pointed her staff forward. Each of the copies rushed forward to attack. Drix pulled out his sword and sliced one neatly in half; however the two halves grew and became two fully formed electric warriors. He tried once again, but there were the same results.

"Drix, if it didn't work the first time, what the hell made you think it would work the second time?" Aura shouted. Drix grumbled and put his sword away.

"Impressive technique, no? Ready to give up?" Elra sneered, holding her staff high, lightening streaking the sky and thunder rumbling.

"What do you think?" Twilmer asked.

"I wouldn't have expected anything less." Elra ordered them to charge forward once more. Aura held up both katanas, blocking a punch from one of the electric warriors. Sparia used her wings to deflect a blow. Victoria jumped agily dodging attacks left and right. Helium stuck near Twilmer who was using her staff to deflect blows. Trellaine was using his magic to keep the warriors off of Guy and himself.

"Miss Pichu," Emily23 whispered, sneaking beside Twilmer.

"What?" Twilmer called, using her staff to throw back one of the warriors.

"I have a plan. Can you distract Elra for me?" Emily23 asked, fingering something in her inventory.

Twilmer smiled, "I almost forgot about that. Yeah, but be quick." Emily23 nodded and Twilmer and Helium ran up to Elra. Zero wasn't far away, taking on two warriors with the help of Heat. "Hey Elra, why don't you stop hiding behind your copies and face me face to face, or are you a scared little man?" Twilmer taunted.

"I wouldn't talk like that if I were you," Elra lunged forward. Twilmer barely dodged her staff. Lightening discharge hit her from the blow, but it had little effect as Twilmer still had some qualities of a Pichu.

"For someone who was so in love with me, you sure seem to want to hurt me," Twilmer tried to catch her off guard, but it didn't work. Twilmer jumped out of the way of a lightning bolt from above.

"You always hurt the ones you love. Also, that was my mistake. Wait," Elra stopped, "is that why--" But Elra never got to finish her sentence as Emily23 tossed forward a pink bottle and it landed right in front of Elra, A huge cloud of pink smoke enveloped Elra. The electric warriors stopped their attacks as the pink cloud faded away.

"Is that that love potion you won when I first met you?" Aura asked.

"Yep," she grinned. Aura smiled at her, making Emily23 blush a deep shade of red. The cloud finally faded away and Elra stood facing Zero.

"Oh shit," he sighed as Elra ran over to him, glomping him. Vaporeon stood, tail twitching in confusion.

"Where have you been all my life? I know we've just met, but I've fallen madly in love with you." Elra hugged him, Zero looking as if he were in pain.

"Oh hell no," Zero tried to step back, but Elra had a firm grip on him.

"Do it for the good of the party, please?" Emily23 asked.

"Do it because that's the only girl you'll ever get," Drix grinned. Aura whapped him on the head.

"I'll do it, but you owe me, Aura." Zero glared.

Aura waved the threat away. "Have fun you two," she laughed as Zero, Heat, Elra, and Vaporeon walked back into the cave. The electric warriors disappeared as they moved out of sight.

"That was great! I'm proud of you," Aura ruffled Emily23's hair.

"I remembered I had it and it seemed to be the only thing to stop her so we could hurry to the event. Hey, what's wrong with Miss Pichu?" Emily23 pointed at the former admin, who was looking at Helium with an expression he didn't think she was capable of.

"After all this time, I never realized just how much I love you." Twilmer glomped Helium, holding him so tight that it was rather painful. "Helium, please tell me you will be with me forever. I can't stand to hear you say otherwise." She nuzzled him and closed her eyes, the two still on the ground.

"Uhh..." Helium couldn't say he wasn't enjoying this, but this just wasn't like Twilmer.

"She was near where the potion landed. She must be affected. Maybe not to the degree that Elra is. I'd say enjoy that while you can, Helium." Trellaine chuckled good-naturedly.

"Hey, don't forget that kissing lesson I gave you," Aura laughed causing the poor boy to blush. Drix laughed as well, remembering their little rendezvous in the hot spring.

"Well, seems like those two will be out of commission for a bit." Guy snorted.

"No, we have to go to the Time Temple!" Twilmer began walking forward, then stopped and turned. "Helium, why aren't you by my side? Do you not love me?" Twilmer almost started to cry, which actually scared the party members.

"I'm right here," Helium ran up to Twilmer, holding her tightly. "I'm not going anywhere." Victoria looked irked at the two of them.

"I think I'm going to be sick," Guy said, arms folded across his chest.

"I think it's kinda sweet." Emily23 grinned. Guy looked at her and snorted.

"This is all fine and well, but we've got to get to the Time Temple." Drix took temporary lead while Twilmer clung to Helium like a lovesick puppy. Aura watched with mild amusement, wondering where she could get some of that potion, giving Drix a sly look. Whether he saw it or not, he didn't show. They arrived at the building and Drix cautiously pushed the door forward and the party stepped cautiously inside.

The Time Temple was huge. Giant pilarz made of some kind of brown stone were placed sporadically about a grand entrance hall. There had been hallways and other rooms that had branched off, but they had long ago crumbled away so that there was just one giant room and the ruins of several walls littering the floor, which was decorated with a royal blue rug that seemed to have stood the test of time as, with the exception of a few holes, the rug had no visible damage. Twilmer stepped over a hunk of bricks that had once formed a wall as the group continued forward. Once they were all inside, the temple glowed momentarily. Bubbles then began to fall from the ceiling. They were about as big as four Silcoons and they fell very slowly. Each seemed to reflect different terrains and people. If the party was silent, they could catch faint sounds of laughter, crying, war cries, and other such noises of living all coming from the bubbles. The temple was rather dark and musty on the inside, save for the bright glow of the bubbles.

"What do we do now?" Drix asked, looking at Aura.

"Don't ask me! No one really knows. Zero wouldn't even have been allowed to enter the temple. This is all new for me," Aura looked around. Twilmer was clinging to Helium and looked rather scared. "Oy, and the only one of us who might have known some of what to do is out of commission."

"Oh, I can't seem to do anything right," Emily23 frowned, looking down at her white boots.

"No, you actually did the right thing. Wait, Trellaine!" Aura turned to face the mage, who bowed deeply.

"Ah, I wondered when you would think of me. I don't know much about this event, but based on my rather limited knowledge, I say that we should move to the very back of the temple to the throne room," Trellaine offered. The party nodded, taking his advice. The odd bubbles lit their path as they approached the throne room. The walls appeared to have been blasted away, but a chair was perfectly placed in the center. The chair was made of silver save the amethyst cushions. Twilmer showed mild interest in the chair, which perfectly matched her attire.

"Now what?" Aura asked. She soon got her answer as the entire temple rumbled. A blue portal opened and a large, elegant Pokémon emblazoned with a diamond galloped forth. He roared loudly causing the white lines on his blue body to glow intensely, blinding the party.

"Who dares to enter the time temple without the appropriate level cap?" The glow subsided and the party saw that the temple was not in ruins like when they had first entered, but everything had been miraculously restored.

"That's right, Dialga controls time!" Emily23 looked up at the giant, blue Pokémon.

"That's Dialga?" Guy looked up. "I'm not impressed."

"You didn't know what Dialga looked like?" Drix raised an eyebrow.

"I don't read hint and cheat books like you. I just know that it's the Pokémon that appears in the level 100 event," Guy spat, glaring at Drix.

"Shut up," Dialga glared at all of them, roaring once more. Twilmer jumped, clinging to Helium. "What is wrong with the girl?" Dialga lowered his head, sniffing Twilmer. "She reeks of strawberries."

"She was hit with a love potion," Emily23 explained, feeling the responsibility should fall to her to explain.

"I see," Dialga raised his head, looking down at the gathered party. "I suppose you would like me to tell you just how to reach Palkia and Satoshi, wouldn't you? I suppose you want to know what really happens during the level 100 event and why Satoshi values these gamers above all others, wouldn't you?" Dialga looked down at them. His voice was firm and gruff, but it was not frightening.

"What do you mean 'what really happens'?" Aura asked, hand resting on the hilt of her katana out of habit.

"I assume that means you want to find out." Dialga yawned deeply. "I don't get awakened much, so excuse my tiredness," he apologized.

"How do we get to where they are?" Emily23 asked cautiously, stepping forward.

"Easy. Each of those bubbles you see contains this building at different times. Some are ancient, some are closer to the presant, and some are in the future. Beautiful, aren't they?" Dialga asked with a sigh.

"Get on with it," Guy humphed impatiently. Trellaine raised an eyebrow at him, but Guy didn't even look at him.

"You must find my diamond." Dialga looked down at them, yawning once more.

"That's it?" Drix asked, crossing his arms.

"Yes. It's actually a simple task, but other gamers greater then you have not been able to find it. I suggest you think hard and hurry. You don't have much time." Dialga rested beside the throne, resting his large head on his forelimbs.

"This could take forever; look at all of those bubbles!" Aura yelled in exasperation.

"If we split up, we could search faster," Trellaine suggested.

"NO!" Twilmer shouted, clinging to Helium. "I won't leave his side."

"Oh this is getting fucking ridiculous." Aura walked over to Twilmer and glared at her. Twilmer glared right back, clinging to Helium. Aura smacked her right across the face. Twilmer stumbled back, holding her face where had slapped her. Twilmer looked up at her confused. "Better?" Aura asked, smiling. She extended her hand forward.

"Much." Twilmer grinned, taking her hand.

"If I had known that, I would have smacked her a long time ago," Drix said with a smirk.

"And if you had, I would have had to see just how far I can shove this staff up your-"

"Okay children!" Aura shouted.

"Oh yes, we have to find the diamond!" Twilmer nodded in determination. "Everyone split up and take a bubble pillar. We'll find this diamond if it kills us!"

ooo

"We'll find that diamond if it kills us," Drix mimicked Twilmer as the group sat around the throne seat.

"Shut up," Twilmer glared at him. "Who knew there would be so many time bubbles? Hey, Hacker, do you have anything that you can use to find that diamond?" Twilmer asked, looking at Trellaine.

"I've tried everything, but I haven't been able to get a reading from any of those bubbles. I'm sorry, oh diminutive one." Trellaine nodded at her.

"Whatever. We can't give up now," Twilmer sighed. She was sitting beside Aura and a good ways away from Helium. considering how close she had been to him earlier, this was very odd.

"Wait a minute, hey Dialga, you said we had to find your diamond, right?" Guy shouted his question towards the snoozing blue beast.

"Yes I did. There's no time like the present to try and find it, you know," he yawned, looking at the pooped party lazing about.

"Exactly my thoughts." Guy stood up and approached Dialga. "Your damn diamond is right there on your fucking chest." Guy glared at Dialga.

"Correct! Do you know how long it takes some people to realize that?" Dialga laughed.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Aura asked, smacking her forehead as she got to her feet, helping Twilmer up as well.

"No, I never said my diamond was in those bubbles, you just assumed it was." Dialga smirked. "I may control time, but as I said, there's no time like the present."

"Satoshi is one sick bastard," Drix grumbled.

Dialga laughed again. "Alright, how if you want to get to the event, Twilmer has to sit on the throne." Dialga motioned towards the amethyst and silver chair with his large head.

"Why me?" Twilmer asked in confusion. Victoria stood beside her protectively, looking at the chair as if it were a ticking time bomb.

"Satoshi modified it before he left with Palkia because he wanted only your party to follow him. An odd fellow that one is. I fear he's trying to use Palkia on that world to make it completely eclipse this one and ultimately the real world where all the gamers live. You must hurry." Dialga looked expectantly at Twilmer.

"Fine." Twilmer walked over to the throne, Victoria following closely behind. Twilmer sat down, holding her staff in case something bad were to occur. "Hey, I feel like a princess up here," Twilmer laughed. The chair began to glow and behind the chair, a small slit began to form, slowly growing to form a blue portal that released a strong gale of wind.

"We have to go in there?" Guy asked with a frown, holding an arm in front of his face to shield it from the wind.

"Yes, that is where Satoshi and Palkia are. Good luck. You are the only ones who can save all three of the worlds." Dialga bowed.

"But no pressure, right?" Drix rolled his eyes.

"Three worlds?" Trellaine looked confused.

"Come on, let's end this already, I'm sick of running around." Twilmer ran into the portal.

"I thought she said she was sick of running," Guy remarked before following her. The rest of the party followed behind, Emily23 taking up the rear, thanking Dialga before running inside.

ooo

Twilmer stepped through the portal on the other side. Her white boot touched down on soft, green grass. A gentle breeze caused her long hair to tickle the sides of her neck. "What?" she looked around, taking in the pristine nature and the beautiful mountains in the distance? Clouds drifted by overhead and the sun shone brightly and warmed Twilmer. As everyone else stepped through the portal, they seem just as surprised as her. A couple of Rattata rustled the grasses as they ran by. Pidgey and Starly drifted on the breeze lazily overhead.

"It appears that we're in the real Pokémon world," Trellaine said in awe.

"Now what?" Aura asked, slightly impatient.

"Now we're in the real Pokémon world...and now we exist in this world," Twilmer said quietly, as if this was all a dream and she was afraid that she would wake up.

"And Satoshi is here. Not good." Aura shifted uneasily. Several Beautifly flew by and Cesar fluttered his wings gaily at them. They waved and flew away. Several Ponyta were grazing nearby and a herd of Tauros stampeded in the distance.

"My dream has finally come true," Twilmer sighed, falling to her knees unable to contain her emotions.

ooo

end part 50

Oho, just what have the PWO crew gotten themselves into? We'll find out in coming parts. Sorry this one was so long coming ;


	51. The Real Deal

Pokémon World Online

Part 51: The Real Deal

Disclaimer: I don't own the usual. People have been asking if the PWO crew will meet Ash and Co. The answer is no, of course not! Ash and Co. are part of an anime. This game is based on a "real" Pokémon world that is inhabited only by Pokémon. It would be interesting to add in humans, but I prefer the thought of a world inhabited only by Pokémon. In this world (the real world I mean) Pokémon is only an online RPG and not a show or a gameboy game or anything. Dunno if that was helpful or not... Anyways, sorry for the long break in action, real life smacked me in the face with finals and moving back home for the summer and getting a job and plushie commissions, I've been busy busy busy.

ooo

Trellaine knelt down, running his hand over the grass. Unlike the grass back in PWO, he could actually feel this! Each blade tickled his palm, soft yet prickly around the edges. "Well, that's enough proof for me. We're in a real world and have become part of this world...somehow." Trellaine stood back up, placing a hand to his chin thoughtfully.

"We can't really be in another world, can we? And what has happened to our bodies?" Guy asked, genuinely confused.

"I'm afraid I don't know. My knowledge lies in computer programs and coding, not alternate worlds and reality," Trellaine sighed.

"Wea?" Victoria brushed a claw over her cheek, surprised to find she was fuzzy. She walked over to Twilmer and rubbed the back part of her claw on Twilmer's arm. Twilmer felt soft and smooth, though not furry in the slightest. And here Victoria had thought that humans were actually covered with a fine, soft fur.

Twilmer patted Victoria's head. Victoria had short, soft fur and her head feathers shimmered in the sunlight. "You're real!" Twilmer exclaimed. Victoria grinned at her partner's enthusiasm.

"I think we've established that. Now what are we supposed to do?" Drix folded his arms across his chest, looking around them. They were in a field surrounded by a forest. In the distance was a mountain range that he assumed was Mt Coronet, though he had no idea if this world was like PWO at all. "Hey, do you think that mountain range is Mt. Coronet?" Drix asked, pointing.

"Probably. I think this field is the one where PWO Corp was built seeing as its slightly hilly. So that forest must be the one where we camped out after that attack and it leads to the base of Mt Coronet. My bet is that Satoshi is there." Aura cracked the knuckles on both of her hands as she spoke. "You okay over there?" Aura glanced over at Twilmer, who was still kneeling in the grass, petting Victoria.

"Pol," Sparia raised an eyebrow.

"Huh? Oh yeah...I'm fine." Twilmer stood up slowly and looked around at the Ledyba floating lazily through the field before shaking her head and coming to her senses. She jogged over to Aura who raised an eyebrow at her. "Yeah, all we have to do now is retrace our steps. Without any gamers on our tails in this world, it should be a walk in the park. Let's go!" Twilmer commanded, marching forward. The party followed. Twilmer was glad she was at the front so that no one could see her looking longingly at several Rattata that scurried by. The world that had become hers for so long was now real.

"I don't understand," Guy muttered as he walked beside Trellaine as the two of them followed Twilmer who was walking ahead dreamily.

"Neither do I." Trellaine smiled, adjusting his long robe as he walked.

Guy rolled his eyes. "I mean, how did we get into this place? This isn't coding, this is the real deal! This world is real! How is this possible?"

"It's not," Trellaine chuckled.

"Are you ever serious?" Guy crossed his arms angrily. "What's happening to our bodies back...wherever? How did a game lead us to a real world? It makes no sense!"

"Actually, it makes perfect sense if you leave out logic and start thinking of the probable instead of always the impossible. Your problem is that you don't have any shred of imagination. You just take what you see and that's it with you. I've seen you treat poor Caesar more like a dog than a partner." Trellaine furrowed his brows, a curious expression on his face.

"Say what you want, but this Butterfree and I have a good relationship, right Caesar?" The Butterfree landed on Guy's head. Guy groaned slightly. "Why do you always do that?" Caesar purred. With a sigh, Guy patted the Butterfree's head.

"Do you and I have a good relationship?" Trellaine batted his eyelashes.

"Shut up you senile hacker!" Guy grumped as Trellaine chuckled. "Seriously, though, how screwed are we?"

"I'd say we're pretty screwed if our fearless leader doesn't get her act together and figure out a way to fix everything soon." The two watched as Twilmer spun around dizzily, giggling as a flock of Pidgey flew overhead. "Okay, we're screwed." Trellaine smiled as he snapped his fingers, a Gengar appearing at his side. "Well hello, what's all this, then?"

"Gar," the Pokémon smirked.

"Hmm, seems fair." Trellaine nodded.

"You have a Gengar? I thought your partner was a Haunter?" Emily23 spun around, walking backwards so that she was facing the two.

"He is, or rather was, but apparently when we crossed worlds, what was left of game data was swapped out for real data. In PWO, to evolve Haunter, you must trade partners with someone. Apparently when the data was being swapped out, it was like a trade, so Haunter evolved into Gengar...or something like that. Really, anything is possible," Trellaine finished, motioning to the world around them.

"True," Emily23 laughed, Lopunny walking backwards in mimicry of her partner, "we are in the real Pokémon world, after all. Anything is possible." She laughed again before turning around with a skip. Guy cleared his throat.

"Hmm," Trellaine looked at him slyly, "someone likes younger women it would seem."

"Shut up," Guy glared at Trellaine. "Just because I clear my throat doesn't mean I'm attracted to the person I'm looking at." Trellaine looked at him sincerely and cleared his throat. "Oh that is IT. I've had it up to here with you, you old prankster." Guy stomped off.

Trellaine chuckled, Gengar walking along beside him. "You don't have to keep up with me if you don't want to. I'll be fine if you want to play around in other dimensions." Gengar didn't need to be told twice. He disappeared from sight.

The group had been walking for a few hours when Twilmer stopped. "This is where we camped out after the PWO Corp attack." There was no denying it as everything looked exactly the same from the moss that carpeted the forest floor to the assorted logs and rocks they had used as seats.

"This place brings back memories, neh?" Aura raised an eyebrow as she glanced sideways at Drix. The swordsman grinned slyly at her.

"Maybe we should camp out here for the night as the sun is pretty low in the sky," Twilmer looked at Aura for approval.

"You're our fearless leader so the choice is yours. Personally, I wouldn't mind the rest. Somehow trudging the Pokémon world as a real person is more tiring than I thought it would be." Aura stifled a yawn.

"Alright then, we'll camp out here, then. Tomorrow we can hopefully make it to the base of the Mount Coronet. Since we don't have to worry about being seen by gamers anymore, we can take a more direct path." Twilmer commanded.

"Which brings up an interesting question; are there other people here?" Guy asked.

"That's a good question, actually," Twilmer put a finger to her chin thoughtfully.

"Gengar," Trellaine called.

"Gar?"

"Go see if there are any people living in this world."

"Gar!" Gengar disappeared.

"So Twil, have you composed yourself?" Aura asked, settling herself beside the grace master.

"Yeah, I was just so overwhelmed before. I've always wanted a world of Pokémon to be real and now it is. My dream has come true," Twilmer sighed happily.

Aura sighed as well. "Dreams can be funny in how they can change so quickly."

"Mine won't, so I don't have to worry about that," Twilmer said smugly.

"Mhm, sure." Aura stood, massaging the sides of her forehead.

"Hey Aura, want to spar?" Drix offered.

"Yes, I need to let lose some of my frustrations." Aura smirked, withdrawing her katanas.

"Oh hell, this sounds like it'll be painful. Anyways, we're not sparring here." Drix motioned to the woods. Aura nodded, understanding where he was going with this. She and her partner followed him silently into the woods. "So what's eating you?" he asked, glancing back at Aura who was still thoughtfully silent.

"Twilmer seems a bit absorbed in all of this. I'm just worried that when all of this is over, she won't want to come back."

"So let the idiot stay. I don't see any problems with it." Drix crossed his arms.

"Of course you don't, but she doesn't belong here." Aura paused thoughtfully for a moment, and then lunged forward.

"Jesus, woman!" Drix pulled out his long blade, flames coating his sword from the Salamence pendant. He blocked and Aura jumped back. He slashed his sword forward, releasing a fireball. Aura dodged it and it hit the tree behind her. They both stopped as the tree began to catch fire, spreading to some of its neighbors.

"Oh shit! Sparia!" The Empoleon appeared at her side. "Use whirlpool on these trees." Sparia obeyed, throwing a huge whirlpool at the trees. Slowly the fire fizzled out leaving behind black, soggy, dead trees. "This isn't a digital world at all or else those trees wouldn't have caught fire." Aura looked thoughtfully at her katanas and touched the tip with her finger. She flinched back in pain and studied her finger curiously. "Blood," she said simply, holding her finger up. Drix furrowed his brows as he watched a drop of blood slide down her finger.

"This...this is real..." Drix was at a loss for words. "We can't even get into our inventories or anything."

"WHAT?!" Aura shrieked. She flailed her arm behind her uselessly and spun around. "There's no buttons to push, there's no digital save space." She growled. "All my items..."

"Will be gone forever if we don't do something and prevent this world and the digital world from merging. Then everyone who plays the game will be stuck here, itemless. They'll be real just like we are and if Satoshi has Palkia and is heading for the real Dialga, then there's nothing stopping him from ruling all the people he brings to this world. With new players everyday--man this is fucked up." Drix shook his head.

"Wait; if he's merging the digital world with this world, then wouldn't some of the data be transferred to this world?" Aura looked up at him.

"Hell if I know, but either way, it's not a very comforting thought considering we'd never be able to leave this place. We'd be stuck forever." Drix shuddered involuntarily at the thought of never being able to return to real life. Sure, real life really sucked for him a good deal of the time, but he didn't want to escape it forever.

"Do you see why I'm worried about Twilmer now?" Aura asked.

"Yeah, yeah I do." Drix sighed in defeat. "This situation is hopeless no matter how I look at it."

"We can stop it, though. Sure, we've never really won before; losing twice at PWO corp. and Dream escaped and caused the start of the merging worlds and--wait!"

"Found a way to make our situation look even more hopeless?" Drix grumped.

"No no, remember, Satoshi isn't the one who started the merging of the world. He just discovered it and decided to use it for his advantage. I think we're giving that bastard too much credit for thinking he figured all of that out. If anything, he's playing this by ear."

"It's a tiny shred of hope, but it's better than nothing." Drix agreed.

"Come on; let's go tell the others what we discussed." Aura started to run off, but Drix grabbed her hand gently.

"That's it? No kiss or anything?" He looked at her sincerely.

"You're an asshole," she frowned, but allowed him to draw her into his arms.

ooo

"Gar!" Gengar appeared, reporting to Trellaine.

"What'd it say?" Twilmer asked eagerly.

"Gengar told me about how he scoured the land and after a diligent search, he has found no others like us," Trellaine translated.

"He told you all of that with 'Gar'?" Helium looked confused.

"When you share a bond as deep as this old trickster and I have, then you can understand a lot with very little...or something fancy like that. Anyways, I'd offer you an orange, but it appears my magic--"

"Hacking," Twilmer interrupted.

"My magic," Trellaine continued unperturbed, "doesn't work here for some reason."

"What are we going to eat, then?" Emily23 asked.

"To be honest, I'm actually sick of oranges," Helium admitted.

"For once, I agree with him." Guy nodded in agreement.

"Bah, you guys just don't understand the finer fruits of life." Trellaine chuckled.

"And I'm so sure you do," Guy retorted.

"Touché," Trellaine laughed.

"Bananas!" Emily23 pointed to a tree that was sprouting a bunch of bananas. She walked over to it, Lopunny at her side. "Lopunny, can you jump high enough to reach those?" Lopunny nodded and crouched low before springing up using the powerful muscles in her back legs. She effortlessly reached the top of the tree, but when she touched the bananas, a high pitched call startled her, causing her to miss and land rather ungracefully. Around her, everyone readied their weapons as the banana tree moved forward. "Wait guys," Emily23 giggled, rubbing what appeared to be the trunk. The tree maid the high pitched noise again and it began to bend down.

"It's a Tropius," Twilmer laughed, running up to the Pokémon and rubbing its neck as well. The Pokémon purred.

"I didn't think Tropius were that big!" Guy looked very surprised.

"Maybe they were programmed after a baby one and the real Tropius are huge!" Emily23 mused with a laugh. The Tropius lowered its head and licked Guy's face.

"Oh great, why is it always me?" Guy groaned.

"It's your animal magnetism I suppose," Trellaine chuckled. The rest of the group laughed as well, except Guy who just looked extremely miffed. Tropius raised its head and using its huge palm frond wings; it rose into the sky and glided lazily away.

"I suppose the Pokémon world is teaming with life," Helium smiled as he turned to Twilmer.

"Yeah," she mumbled, looking away and turning to Emily23. "I think I can appreciate having you on the party now, though I still think you're annoying. Think you can find anymore Pokémon?"

"Of course, I'm a tamer after all!" Emily23 and Twilmer disappeared into the woods, Victoria and Lopunny following along behind them.

"What did I do?" Helium asked with a frown.

"I think Twilmer's just drunk on the fact that Pokémon are real. Give it a bit. Maybe it'll calm down soon," Trellaine reassured, though Guy didn't appear to share his opinions, but Guy kept his mouth shut.

"I hope you're right," Helium sighed.

ooo

End part 51

More action next time, I promise.


	52. Magnetic Force

Pokémon World Online

Part 52: Magnetic Force

Disclaimer: I don't own certain things and everything else I do own :3 time for some action D and no, Guy, I won't stop teasing Guy...or you XD you're just too fun to tease. I dedicate this part to you ;) especially the part about a certain doctor XD

ooo

Twilmer stared up at the sky above her. Since there were no city lights, the night sky was absolutely beautiful. Since she lived in New York, the city was often times covered in smog and at night the light pollution made it impossible to see any stars at all, but here was a completely different story. She sighed as her mind turned to everything she had heard that night. Drix and Aura had explained that they would have to watch their attacks and their theory on Satoshi. Twilmer had listened silently the whole time. Satoshi wasn't the smartest person in the world (though in this world, perhaps he was), but he was probably smart enough to get past the holes Aura and Drix mentioned. Twilmer sighed and knew that the only reason that she still mentally stuck up for her old boss was because she had looked up to him. She felt the blow harder than anyone when the man she trusted had turned his back on everyone. Not only that, but Dream was on the loose somewhere and for all she knew, Dream was in this world since she was the one who began the merging of the two worlds.

Everything was so complicated that her thoughts turned to mud and she could barely wade through them. With a sigh, Twilmer turned over, closing her eyes to try and capture some sleep. She was using her cape as a blanket. The material was really soft and nice, though Twilmer was regretting her choice of outfit in the game. As much as a leotard suited a grace master and allowed for maximum movement, in real life, it wasn't a very comfortable thing to wear all the time.

Twilmer turned again and gave up trying to get any sleep. She had too much on her mind. "You up, too?" She heard Helium ask as he sat up. He had been using his pink robe as a blanket. Twilmer held a finger to her lips as she made sure the noise hadn't woken anyone up. The only other noise besides the soft chirping of Kricketune and Kricketot were Drix's snores and Emily23 mentioning something about tomatoes in her sleep. Twilmer motioned with her finger for Helium to follow her. The two walked off into the woods far enough where they wouldn't be heard. The moon above them provided enough light, not that they could have gotten out a lantern since they couldn't access their inventories. Vileplume slept soundly, but Victoria, who had not been able to sleep either since she was mostly a nocturnal Pokémon anyways, had seen them leave and had followed in the shadows. She used the feathers on her head to sense where she was going. Weavile actually had poor night vision, but due to their head feathers, they could sense their way easily through any obstacles. Victoria had to admit that she loved using her senses rather than programming to get around.

"Twilmer, I've wanted to talk to you," Helium said as he adjusted the ties of his robe so that it stayed in place.

"I'm sure you have." Twilmer sat down on a stump, fidgeting with the lace on her boot, acting as if she were tying it. She avoided looking at Helium.

Helium sighed. He was used to her coldness, but for some reason this time seemed different. "I wanted to talk about when you were hit with the love potion."

"Well, I don't want to talk about that," Twilmer stated matter-of-factly. She still would not look at the herbalist.

"Is something bothering you?" Helium didn't look at Twilmer now either, sitting on a stump and picking at the mushrooms sprouting around its base.

"Just because I don't want to talk about something doesn't mean that anything's wrong with me!" she snapped.

"No it doesn't, but there is something wrong." Helium looked over at Twilmer who still had her back to him.

"Yes, okay, I'll admit there is something wrong, but as I said before, I don't want to talk about it. Not to you, anyways."

"Why not?" Helium asked.

"Because it has to do with you." Twilmer bit her lip. "It's getting late, can we finish this conversation later?" Twilmer asked as she left the area, leaving Helium behind.

"I'd like to continue it now..." Helium said as he out his head in his hands.

ooo

"We're not so different, her and I, are we, Nightmare?" Dream turned to her Misdreavous, stroking the Pokémon's jeweled neck. The Misdreavous purred at the touch. Dream placed a long fingernail to her ruby red lips. "Having her deepest wish come true is driving her away from those she loves. She's totally absorbed in this world as I was in that one."

"Mis?" Nightmare looked up.

"Okay, maybe not that absorbed. Still, I've been watching her. It's hard to hate someone so like myself."

"Mis?"

"I suppose becoming real once more has given me feelings..." Dream trailed off, enjoying a gentle breeze. "It's been so long since I've felt the wind. It's been so long since I've felt..." Her Misdreavous looked over at her questioningly. Dream ignored her as she gazed up at the moon and the stars. For so long she had been bits of data that she'd forgotten what it was like to be alive. She had had a name once a long time ago. What was it again? It wasn't Dream, nor had it been before when she'd first started the game. She placed a hand to her cheek; her skin felt smooth. "I was alive at one point. I was unhappy back then so I delved into a game and it replaced my real life. There was also something not quite right about me. I don't remember much, but I suppose that's not important now."

"Mis," Nightmare did not understand Dream's babblings nor did it really care about them. It was uneasy and could sense the good dreams of the group below. It hungered to devour those dreams and replace them with fiendish and horrific visions.

"Come on, we have work to do. You can feast later." Dream moved forward swiftly; the Misdreavous trailing reluctantly behind.

ooo

"So there I was, she a doctor with the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen and I a mere patient of hers at the crisp age of sixteen with scrapped knees and a bloody nose from the accident. It never would have worked between us," Guy recounted, motioning with his hands dramatically. Emily23 giggled. "It's true. I knew then that she was the one for me and now, seven years later, I can still remember her gentle touch as she bandaged me up."

Twilmer snorted and shook her head. The party had set out early that morning to head towards Mt Coronet and get to the temple where Palkia and Satoshi would be if their assumptions were correct. They were playing a simple question game as they walked to pass the time. Despite being in such a hopeless position, the fact that they were real once more seemed to have lifted their spirits. "So that was your first real love?" Twilmer laughed.

"Don't laugh, it's true. Alright, I answered the stupid question, now you all have to do the same," Guy grumped, folding his arms over his chest.

"I've never really been in love yet, but then again, I'm only fourteen," Emily23 giggled as she walked ahead, Lopunny at her side.

"My first real love was Derek, but we all know how that ended." Twilmer waved a hand, refusing to talk about what happened.

Trellaine looked up dreamily. "I had a true love once. Ahh, I remember seeing her in a store window. She was sleek and smooth and purred like a kitten. Ahh, I'll never forget my first hard drive."

"You moron, that's not what we're talking about." Guy glared at him.

"Oh, then I can't say I've ever been in love. The idea just doesn't appeal to me." He folded his arms behind his head.

"I've been in love a few times," Drix commented as he walked, arms folded. "I think my first love was some blonde girl in middle school. I don't even remember her name now, but back then, she was all I could think of night and day. We did get together eventually and went to the school dance and other things, but one thing led to another and children will be children. It only lasted a year."

Helium looked down. "My first love dumped me after three weeks because she said I was too shy or something like that."

"There's nothing wrong with being shy," Twilmer commented with a slight blush. She refused to look at Helium.

Aura remained silent through all of this. "Hey, it's your turn," Drix prodded.

"My first real love? Her name was Madeline. Sure, there were others before, but this was the first time I'd been in love on such a level. I'd planned to spend the rest of my life with her..." Aura trailed off.

"New question," Emily23 jumped up, changing the subject. She sensed this was going into very personal territory. Aura silently thanked her for that. The terrain around them had started to become rocky as they neared the mountain. "What's your-" Emily23 was abruptly interrupted as a strong thunderbolt touched down right in front of the group.

"What was that?" Guy asked as they looked up and saw a swarm of Magnemite, Magneton, and Magnezone circling overhead. They attacked, showering done bolts to the group below. Victoria shot off an ice beam as Twilmer dodged a lightning bolt. Victoria froze a few Magnemite, but compared to the vast number circling above them, it didn't make much of a difference.

"Why are there so many magnet Pokémon here?" Emily23 asked, looking to Aura for an answer.

"Maybe they're trying to keep us from entering their territory or something," Aura answered, dodging a bolt. They swarmed overhead, though it looked like the majority of the swarm were Magnemite, but that didn't help their chances any due to the sheer numbers of the magnet Pokémon.

"There's no way we can defeat all of them. We'll have to scare them away or try and run past them!" Twilmer shouted. She and Victoria ran forward, but a huge shockwave stopped them in their tracks. "Okay, running past them is not an option."

"Bzzzzt," a Magnezone buzzed as he floated down. Twilmer strained, but she couldn't understand him as a human.

"Do you think the pendant will still work?" Twilmer asked Trellaine as she dodged a thunderbolt. Beside her, Helium was having Vileplume use stun spore, paralyzing a few Magneton. Emily23 and Lopunny were cowering behind Guy as they were both close range fighters and the magnet Pokémon were overhead.

"I don't know. We can't get into our inventory, but maybe your pendant will still work. I know coding; real life is still a mystery to me!" Trellaine shouted over the noise of a thunder strike nearby. Sparia and Victoria had teamed up, using their ice beam to freeze as any of the Magnemite and Magneton that they could. Vileplume and Caesar were using stun spore and sleep powder. Lopunny jumped up and down beside Victoria and Sparia, unsure of what to do. She had no long range attacks to use and she didn't think taming would work on such a large group of Pokémon

"Well, I guess it doesn't hurt to try. If I can understand what those Pokémon are saying, then perhaps I can reason with them and figure out why they're attacking us." Twilmer held the pendant in her hands.

"Wait, what if you use it and you're stuck as a Pokémon?" Helium looked up at her.

"Why don't you just ask Sparia or Victoria? Sure we can't completely understand them, but it'd be better than risking it." Aura glanced over at her, pulling out her katanas to deflect a gyro ball.

Twilmer held the pendant in her hands, debating what to do as she bit her lip. Three of the Magnezone above nodded at each other, using lock-on. "Twil, look out!" Helium shouted as the three powered up their zap cannon attacks. Twilmer turned just as the attacks were shot forward. Before anyone could blink, they had connected with their target. Smoke blurred everyone's vision.

"Twilmer!" Aura shouted, coughing as she ran forward through the smoke. "Where are you?"

ooo

End part 52

You hate me, don't you? XD I leave you hanging for months only to end you on a cliff hanger. Hope you enjoyed it 3 No, I haven't and will never abandon this fic 3


	53. Special 5: Other side Other story

Pokémon World Online

Part 53, Special 5: The other side; the other story

Disclaimer: I do not own Space Invaders or any other real world stuff. This part derives from the action (you know me well enough by now to know I never continue cliff hangers for a bit :P) and explores what's happening "irl" Also, Libby gets credit for coming up with the screen message because I could not for the life of me figure out something that would work out the way I wanted (that's my roommate :3). And noooo, I'm not writing about Jeffrey because I saw The Dark Night, loved it, and wanted to write about a cool butler like Alfred because I'm a dork who came out of the movie theater giggling like an idiot, not at all *whistles*

ooo

Jeffery was walking up the twenty flights of stairs up to Twila's apartment (which was rather large and more like a penthouse even if she rarely, if ever, left her office) rather than take the elevator like he normally did. It was the same as a child taking the long route back to his angry mother just to prolong the punishment. He looked up and saw the number 12 above a door. Crap, he was over halfway there. Jeffrey had been missing in action for the past two days and hadn't tried very hard to contact Twila either. He knew she never left her game and that she pretty much depended on him to provide for her. He hoped that perhaps his absence might have made her a little more self dependant and would have torn her away from that game. Sometimes he really worried about her.

Twila was a very easy client, he had to admit. She never left her office, so the house was generally always tidy. Once a week he would give everything a quick dusting and vacuuming and the bathrooms a once over. Mainly his job was to make sure that Twila had food and drink when she needed it, make sure the trash was taken out, tidy up the office and connecting bathroom, do the laundry, and he was pretty much free to surf the internet, watch TV, or however else he pleased until his shift was up. Sometimes Twila would ask him to spend the night to take care of her, especially if she was doing a hard quest, but he never really minded. He didn't have a wife or kids to return to, so it was sometimes nice to have the company, even if she was holed up in another room in front of the computer.

He did worry about her, though. After all, playing a game like that all the time so that you rarely took off the helmet could not be healthy, but who was he to complain? In his younger days he had spent many hours playing arcade games. His proudest moment was keeping a game of Space Invader going for two days straight. His score had been through the roof and no one had been able to touch him. He had thrived off of coffee and french fries those forty eight hours. He had been sad when the arcade had closed down to make way for a gaming store and the machine had been shipped off to who knows where. He looked up at the door he just passed. Seventeen. He sighed and paused to scratch his arm; anything to prolong the moment when he might even lose his job.

He had been away at a family event. He really didn't have many friends and was pretty antisocial, so when he got an invite to go to the beach with his brother and cousins, he jumped at the chance. He had so much fun in the sun and surf, he forgot about contacting Twila and it made him feel bad. Even though she was his employer (and paid fairly well, he might add), he would sometimes view her as the daughter he never had. Even before she closed herself off from the world and only played the game, she never talked about her family or contacted them save for a brother, but that was maybe twice since he'd known her. She preferred to stay inside and never went out much. She could be sarcastic and headstrong and she definitely had a huge ego, but she always seemed a bit sad under it all. She would sit quietly sometimes and sigh. It was not his place to ask what was wrong, but he did feel bad for her.

He came to floor twenty, took a deep breath, and entered the door. The apartment was on the top floor and there was only one other apartment on that floor, which was across from where Twila was staying. Jeffrey always wondered how she was able to afford such a place, but when he saw a check from PWO corp. (which had been when their direct deposit system had broken down for a few days), he knew why. The place paid very well, but this was not surprising considering he had heard the game had nearly one billion (or maybe this had been an exaggeration) players and if each of those players had to pay by the month to play and more got the game every day, then he could just imagine the cash cow this company was.

"Miss Twila?" Jeffrey cautioned as he turned the key in the door and pushed it open. Silence met him. He supposed he deserved this. He sighed and entered the living room, closing and locking the door behind him. "Miss Twila?" he called again, but was met with more silence. He sighed and made his way to Twila's office. He opened the door and gasped, dropping his keys on the floor. Twila was lying on the floor; her helmet had fallen off and was lying beside her. The screen which usually displayed some area of Pokémon World Online had a message on it that read "Internal Error; New Software Found."

ooo

"I don't feel right about this anymore, Jason. Don't you ever feel...bad about it?" Ben adjusted the pack he had slung over his shoulder as he carried his laundry hamper in both arms.

"Not anymore. I'm sure I used to, but being on a star college soccer team, you get used to it," Jason sniffed, winking at a few passing girls. They giggled as the two passed by.

"Hey Jason, why did you come for summer school anyways? I've been doing some thinking lately and you don't seem like the type who is trying to graduate early."

"You should think less about why I'm here and more about where Demetrius has been." Jason didn't want to admit it, but sometimes paying more attention to sports and women and less attention to his classes resulted in very bad grades. If Jason wanted to continue soccer, than he had to take summer classes to catch up and so far he wasn't even doing a good job at that. When it came down to it, soccer was all he had. "Demetrius has been alone for like almost a week now and I bet he's been on that stupid game or talking to that online chick this whole time."

"Is it that bad that he's met someone online? I mean, online relationships aren't all that bad, right?"

"Pfft, yeah, if you like cybering. Come on, it's just a relationship built on emotions and compatibility and talking and no sex."

"Sign me up," Ben laughed. Jason gave him an angry glare. "I'll meet you on the soccer field in twenty minutes; let me get web head."

"Later," Jason waved. He had left his luggage in his car and planned on picking it up later that night. First stop for him was the post office. He walked over to the wall where all of the students' post office boxes were stacked and located his; number 4527. He took a deep breath before turning the combination lock on the front and opening it. He pulled out the letter inside and opened it gently. He scanned quickly through it to get to the most important part. "We are afraid to inform you that your scholarship has been denied." It was all Jason needed to see. He dropped the letter and for the first time in many years, felt hot tears running down his face.

o

"Hey, Demetrius! I'm back and sorry for leaving you on such bad terms." Ben shouted through the door, knocking on it. "Hey, can you open up? My arms are full. I know you're in there; I can hear the TV!" Ben knocked on the door a few more times before sighing. "I suppose I deserve this after how I treated you. Heh, some best friend I turned out to be."

Ben set the hamper down and dug his keys out of his pocket. He opened the door, kicking his hamper inside. "Demetrius?" He asked, looking at his friend who had his head down on his desk. "Long night on PWO?" Demetrius did not stir. "Hey, buddy?" Ben shook his shoulder. Nothing. "This is rather childish of you!" Ben pushed him lightly and Demetrius fell out of the chair and sprawled on the ground. "What?" Ben kneeled down beside his friend. "Oh my god!"

He ran out into the hall shouting, "Someone call an ambulance or the police! My roommate is..." As Ben ran down the hallway, he failed to notice the message on Demetrius' laptop: "Internal Error; New Software Found."

ooo

"I can't believe I just did this," Donna sobbed into her hands. She was riding in the passenger seat of a rusty old truck; a friend from her husband's office was driving in stony faced silence toward her house. "I was so depressed when I found out I guess I snapped."

"Honey, I'm surprised that you didn't find out sooner. Roger is a no good tramp and he always has been. I figured you knew that when you met him." The driver looked over at her with a look that was a mixture of pity and disgust.

"I know, I know Latoya, but he said it was different. He was unhappy with his wife and he said I was the only one who had made him so happy." Donna blew her nose, a small smile playing on her face at the memory.

"Pull yourself together. Yeah, you and every other girl he's slept with have made him happy." Latoya gripped the wheel, her temper wanting to flare up. "You have a CHILD, girl. you can't just run out and cry whenever you damn well please." She ran a hand through her stiff, black hair. "Lord, give me strength."

"I know, I'm a horrible mother. I shouldn't have done what I did, but I just had to know. I love him." Donna sobbed.

"Well he didn't love you. Roger is, what, your third husband? Honey, you have a bad habit of picking the wrong men. You should be worrying less about your next failed prince charming and more about the daughter who will always be with you. This doesn't mean you just stop looking for the right relationship, but do it in a way that doesn't destroy the one you have with your daughter."

"Do you think she'll forgive me?"

"Of course she will." Latoya pulled up to the front of Donna's house. "I'll go in with you. Look, just be good to Emily. I know she loves you; you just need to treat that baby right." Donna nodded as the two unbuckled their seatbelts and stepped out of the truck, slamming the doors shut. Donna whiped her eyes on a handkerchief as she walked up the steps to the porch, Latoya at her side. She took her keys out of her pocket and with a shaking hand, she unlocked the door.

"Emily?" she shouted, looking around. She didn't hear anything. If she knew her daughter, she'd be at the computer playing that online game. She walked up the stairs. "Emily?" she called again. Still nothing. "Maybe she's not home." Donna looked at Latoya, who motioned her forward. Donna walked over to her daughter's room and opened the door. She then screamed. Her daughter was lying unconscious in front of the computer which displayed the message "Internal Error; New Software Found."

ooo

"It's the darnedest thing," a doctor tapped a pen against his chin, staring at a few charts, "we just had a young adult with black hair brought in for the same thing."

"I hope this doesn't affect the fall line of Eskarine's designs. I love her handbags." a female doctor wearing a blue dressed joked.

"This is no joking matter. These two are comatose for unexplained reasons. Both were last playing a game on the computer. Maybe they're linked, though no one else who plays that online Pokémon game has been found comatose that I'm aware of, or at least not in New York." The doctor began chewing on the cap of his pen absentmindedly.

"They're not the only ones, actually." The head doctor stepped in the room, holding up a few newspaper articles. "Turn on the TV, it's on the news everywhere. Someone in Maryland, someone in Ohio, not just here in New York. So far there are six in total and all were found with the same message on their screen and all played the same game. Something tells me all of these cases are related."

"Do you think there could be any more cases?" The woman doctor asked, straightening her big, square glasses.

"Who knows, but we're supposed to meet with the doctor from Maryland tomorrow to discuss what's going on."

ooo

"Dearie, come here quick!" A mousey woman called to her husband.

"What is it, pumpkin?" he asked, sitting beside her on the couch.

"The news, look, it's Eskarine!" The woman pointed to the screen.

"Our Eskarine? The one who's supposed to be designing a fall line for me?" he looked at the screen incredulously.

"Shh!" His wife shushed him, turning the volume up.

o

"Six people have been admitted to different hospitals across the country. They are in a comatose state with no sign of coming out of it. Doctors believe that these six cases are related to an online video game sensation called Pokémon World Online. All six of these individuals were playing the game when they were found unconscious and all of them had the same error message on their screen. We tried to reach the creator of this gaming sensation, Satoshi Tajiri, but he was not available for contact. The most important question we have is this game unsafe for our children? Among the people who were discovered unconscious is an administrator for the game, Twila Ramirez, an up and coming university soccer player, Demetrius Flosher, and famous designer Eskarine Pillar."

The reporter was standing in front of the apartment where Eskarine lived. She continued talking about the individuals who had been discovered. All across America, the families of our party members watched in horror. Even those in other countries could sympathize. "As a last word, I ask the creators of the game to shut down the game until whatever has caused these individuals to become this way is discovered. We can't let this happen to anyone else."

ooo

End part 53

I finally figured out how to fix my profile and user pic and everything on FF XD so you can check that out if you want, there's not much there. Also, I want to thank my loyal reviewers ^^ sorry for the huge gap in parts. Thanks for putting up with me and I always do love hearing from you guys! Let me know what you think. I giggled when I wrote the manager's part; I love those two XD

I so wanted to write House and his team as the doctors up there, you don't know how tempting it was hehehe


	54. Survival of the Fittest

Pokémon World Online

Part 54: Survival of the Fittest

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon or anything related. I own the characters and their personalities. Yes, I made a cliff hanger because I couldn't figure out which outcome to take from the Magnezone blast ^^; I do have the entire story planned, but certain elements have wiggle room. Anyways, big thanks to Moya for helping me sort out my ideas for what would happen all that time ago.

ooo

There was nothing to do but wait until the smoke cleared. The Magnezone above buzzed quietly waiting to see if they had hit their target. Finally the smoke cleared and lying in a slightly bloody heap was Twilmer. "No," Emily23 whispered. The group drew nearer to her. Aura bent down and could see that Twilmer's chest still rose and fell.

"She's still alive. Let's take her and get the hell out of here." Aura struggled to lift her up, Helium helping so that her arms were over their necks and they could use their arms to hold up her rear and legs.

"What about getting to Mt Coronet?" Drix asked, glaring at the magnet Pokémon who were buzzing excitedly, generating enough static electricity that everyone's hair stood up oddly, which would have been humorous if not given the current situation.

"We'll get there eventually. That's not important right now." Aura silently led the group forward away from the rocky roads of the mountain and into the forest. She led them quite some way to a familiar wood hollow. "Ahh, I knew this place would still be here." Aura and Helium gently laid Twilmer down. "Do you or Guy have any powders we can use to heal her?"

"All of my powders were in my inventory," Guy cleared his throat.

"I could try and find some plants, but I'm afraid making a medicine here isn't quite like making one in the game. I can see if there are any herbs I recognize nearby, though. It's worth a look." Helium clambered to the entrance and went to go look around. Twilmer coughed opening her eyes.

"You're awake," Aura looked down at her. Twilmer looked around the hollow, recognizing where they were. Guy and Trellaine were sitting near the entrance whispering to each other, Drix was near the back fiddling with his own pendant, and Emily23 was kneeling right beside her looking relieved.

"What happened?" Twilmer coughed, trying to sit up. She gasped in pain. Victoria was at her side in an instant, placing a claw gently to her chest, making her lay back down. Twilmer did without much protest. She closed her eyes in pain, holding Victoria's claw with her hand...her hand? "I'm not a Pichu?" Twilmer looked surprised. Her voice was very quiet. Only Aura and Emily23 could hear her.

"No, why?" Aura whispered, taking her jacket vest off. She folded it and placed it under Twilmer's head like a pillow.

"I turned the pendant once they used lock on. I figured I could absorb the attack as a Pichu, which is why I didn't even try to run. Stupid..." Twilmer stopped as Aura held a finger to her lips to silence her.

"You didn't know, Miss Pichu." Emily23 looked down at her, blue eyes full of worry. "You're okay?"

"Not really; I hurt all over and I can't even sit up. My pendant must be busted," Twilmer sighed, her voice strained.

"This is the real world, so most likely the glitch doesn't exist here or something. I don't understand all of this coding stuff. What I do understand is that you are badly hurt and you should be thankful that you're even alive from the look of that wound. You should go back to sleep." Aura eyed Twilmer.

"I can't, though! Mt Coronet..." Twilmer tried to get up again, but groaned in pain. She lay back as Victoria pushed her down once more. She closed her eyes and was soon asleep.

"Good, she's asleep," Aura smiled, looking over at Emily23.

"You're quite the motherly type," she laughed.

"I'm not motherly, but when a friend's in pain, I know what to do." Aura placed her hands behind her on the leafy ground, sitting back.

"I wish my own mother could be more like you..." Emily23 trailed off.

"What do you mean?" Aura asked, maneuvering herself so that she was sitting beside the tamer.

"It's nothing important," Emily23 laughed, covering her sadness.

"If it was, you wouldn't have brought it up," Aura looked over at Emily, who was hugging her knees, long blonde hair falling over her shoulders.

"Well, she's a hopeless romantic and she recently got married to this guy from her job. He was okay at first and he seemed like a really nice guy, but then he changed after they got married. He was always rude to Mom and she would just shake it off and act like nothing happened. I got sick of it and stood up to him one day, which he didn't like. He stormed out of the house and Mom yelled at me before storming after him. I know that she loves him and doesn't mean anything when she acts mad at me, but I wish she'd just love me or something and not give me that disapproving look. Heck, I even started to try and change myself to maybe be more acceptable to her..." Emily23 hid her face in her arms, not wanting Aura to see her cry.

"You don't have to change yourself for anyone, you know?" Aura pulled Emily23 towards her and hugged her, allowing her to cry on her shoulder before she pulled away and looked at the girl. "You look beautiful; you have a nice, strong face. What were you changing, if I may ask?"

"I don't want to say," Emily23 looked away, ashamed.

"Please?" Aura asked. Sparia looked over at her, not having heard her partner say please like this in quite some time.

"Well," she sighed, playing with the fluff on Lopunny's ear, "first of all, I don't like long hair. I always liked my hair when it was short. Secondly, I..." she trailed off, playing with the fur some more before admitting with a sigh "I kind of started trying to lose even more weight to be skinny like she used to be so maybe she'd want to go shopping with me again like we used to. I tried a more extreme method and I feel so ashamed, and it doesn't seem to be working anyways because she still hangs over that guy."

Aura stared at her hard and long. She really didn't know what to say about the method and she didn't want to ask more about that since it took a lot out of the girl to even confess that much. Aura looked up at Emily23's hair. It was long and bouncy and was adorned with a head band that had Lopunny ears on it, which dangled down. "You know, I'm a fashion designer in real life and as such, I've hung around with many different people in the fashion industry." Emily23 looked up confused as she saw Aura walk over to Trellaine. "You, can your Gengar whip up a pair of scissors?"

"Well, not unless it exists already in this world, but I can whip you up a pair." Trellaine pulled his sleeves up one after another and let them fall back to cover his pudgy wrists. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out a pair. "There you are."

"How the hell did you do that?" she asked, slightly astounded.

"A magician never reveals his secrets," Trellaine crossed his arms, smiling pleasantly.

"He keeps a sewing kit in his pocket since his robes snag and tear a lot," Guy answered. "Just like our weapons and Drix and Twilmer's pendants, anything we were carrying with us at the time must have become real as well."

"True, which is also a good thing in the clothing department," Aura paused thoughtfully before grabbing Emily23's hand. "You three keep an eye on Twil while I take Em out for a little girl time." The two rushed out of the area and out of sight.

"Girl time?" Drix looked up, confused. "We should have some guy time." He looked over at Guy and Trellaine.

"What do you do for guy time?" Guy asked, Caesar fluttering gently around his head. "I mean, besides drink beer and talk about the latest soccer or football game considering we don't have either of those."

"We could talk about girls and do each other's nails," Trellaine clapped his hands, earning a death glare from Guy.

"Neither of you are very manly, I mean look at you. Guy, you'd be close if it weren't for that Butterfree." Drix lay back, resting his head on his hands.

"Excuse me? This Butterfree could kick your posterior several times over. Hell, you saw him taking on that Steelix back at PWO corp. I'm manlier than you if anything, I mean look at you. Sure, you have the muscles, but your hair is ridiculous," Guy eyed the mop of hair that was dark with a small purple hue to it.

"And just because I sew and would paint my nails if given the chance and--"

"Yes, thank you," Guy interrupted Trellaine. "You're not helping."

"So arguing is more like having guy time?" Trellaine looked at the two of them.

"I just hope Helium doesn't come back while we're having guy time because he's one of the most feminine non-gay guys I've ever met." Drix grumped.

"You know, that's a stereotype about gay guys being girly. You should really not use them as they're degrading," Guy challenged.

"And you would know?" Drix snorted.

"I know enough to not be a rude and lazy bum like you...but I do agree that Helium is rather feminine. The pink robes and lack of standing up to Twilmer show it." Guy snickered.

"Hey, don't forget his love of romance novels," Drix sat up again, laughing.

"What does he even see in her? That former admin has a huge ego, is rude, and she has a bad temper." He looked over at Twilmer, who stirred and started coughing violently.

"Twilmer!" Drix rushed over to her, being closest. Victoria glared at him, but allowed him to hold the back of his hand to her forehead. "Oh man, she's burning up!" Someone needs to get a wet washcloth or something." Victoria held her hand until her coughs died away.

"Ugh, my chest hurts so much," Twilmer moaned hoarsely. She coughed again and spat out blood. Victoria looked at it in fear. She used ice beam in the air, forming a beam and letting it fall to the ground, breaking into several pieces. She then jumped over to Trellaine and used slash to cut off a part of his robe. She ran back over to the ice and put it into the robe piece and tied it up, placing it on her partner's head. "Thank you," Twilmer said before drifting back to sleep.

"She's worse than I thought." Guy crawled over to her and felt her arms. "They're clammy. I don't know much about medicine, but I hope Helium finds something quick..."

ooo

"Smell anything?" Helium asked Vileplume. Vileplume ran in a circle and stopped, petals drooping. "I'll take that as a no. We've been searching forever," Helium groaned as the two sat in the field that they'd wandered into. They sat on a rock as Helium looked at all of the different flowers. They matched the ones found in the game perfectly, but they were all flowers that weren't very useful. Helium assumed that they'd mixed as many plants together as they had in the game to allow herbalists to almost always find what they need.

An idea suddenly struck the young man. "I wonder if the same field Pokémon roam around here as in the game. Vileplume, use sweet scent to see if we can attract any to us."

Vileplume nodded and a pink tinted aroma wafted from the pistol on his head. The scent attracted many Rattata and Oddish to the area as well as Spearow and Pidgey, but these weren't the Pokémon Helium was looking for. "Follow me and keep using that scent." Helium started walking off towards a rock out cropping as Vileplume followed and behind him was the posse of field Pokémon. Sure enough, as they got toward the rock, Helium saw a family of Chansey. He saw a baby Happiny stick its head from the rock and look around. It saw Helium and squeaked, withdrawing its head.

The small call of terror made its parents step out from behind the rock. The Chansey didn't look happy. They used egg bomb on Helium, chasing him out of the valley. "I don't want to hurt you; I just need your help!" He yelled as he ran away, egg bombs pelting the ground behind him. They stopped when he reached the forest and he saw the two move back to their young. "I need Emily here. I bet she would know how to handle those Pokémon. We need them because not only are they excellent care takers, but their egg has all kinds of healing properties." Vileplume merely drooled at this; a habit he had retained since his Gloom days.

ooo

"Lady and gentlemen, Pokémon of all sizes, I present to you, the new Emily Twenty Three!" Aura called, emphasizing each part of her screen name. Emily stepped timidly into view.

"What do you think?" she asked, clasping her hands nervously together behind her back. Twilmer, with the help of Victoria, raised her head slightly to see what the commotion was all about.

"Whoa, you look nice!" Drix winked at Aura, clapping. Aura rolled her eyes.

"I like it," Twilmer rasped, making the small girl blush.

"Not bad," Guy agreed, which was a huge compliment coming from him.

"I couldn't even program something that nice," Trellaine applauded.

"You really think it looks good?" Emily23 asked.

"See for yourself," Aura had Sparia use water gun in a small dip in the ground. Emily23 looked down into it intently. Her hair was short now and she could feel a breeze on the back of her neck. She blinked a few times, feeling her hair in disbelief. "So, what do you think?" Aura got her answer in the form of a huge hug that almost knocked her over.

"It's what I love! My hair looks amazing when it's shorter like this! It really makes my face stand out. I only wish it looked like this in real life, whatever that is now."

"I tell you what, if we ever get out of this, I'll cut your hair for you in real life; my treat." Aura winked.

"Emily!" The group turned as they heard Helium's shouts coming from outside. "Whoa," he paused as he entered the entrance, looking at her new looks.

"Do you like it?" she asked.

"It's awesome!" Helium grinned. "Anyways, I really need your taming and Pokémon expertise right about now. I'll explain on the way." Emily23 nodded and she ran off after him, Lopunny bounding behind.

"What do you suppose they're off to?" Guy raised an eyebrow.

"Where ever it is, I hope they bring oranges; I'm starving!" Trellaine laughed, the others groaned, sick of the citrus fruits.

ooo

End Part 54

Yay I finished a part relatively quickly. I wonder what'll happen with our group. Will Twilmer ever get better? Will Helium and Emily23 be able to get the Chansey family to help? All this and more in the next part.

Also...I could really use a haircut myself XD


	55. Blessings and Forgiveness

Pokémon World Online

Part 55: Blessings and Forgiveness

Disclaimer: I hope you enjoy this part, which didn't take me long to write. I had so much fun writing it and as I've been thinking about PWO more and I'm out of school for the holidays, my plan is to possibly finish this fic over the course of the next month :x I'm both sad and happy at this thought. Don't worry, though, I plan on having a Christmas interlude sometime soon. It wouldn't be like me to continue cliffhangers now would it ;D

Oh! And to answer a question asked, generally the gender of the partners match because they connect the best with each other, but they don't HAVE to be the same gender. I know I made that unclear ^^;

ooo

"They're back there," Helium pointed to the rock where the two Chansey and the Happiny had been when they chased him away just moments before. Everything looked peaceful now and Helium wasn't even sure if the Pokémon were still back there, but he didn't dare chance a peek lest he face the egg bomb wrath once again.

"That's very smart of you. The guide says that Chansey can cure illness and heal pain with their egg. Also, their egg is full of happiness and chases the blues away!" Emily23 smiled as she watched Lopunny, who was listening for any movement that might indicate where the family was hiding.

"Happiness? Do you think it could make Twilmer happy? She's been through so much and it'd be great to see her like that..." Helium trailed off as he thought about how Twilmer might be if her past had never happened, if the glitch had never taken hold of her, if the corporates who she'd looked up to never betrayed her, if the incident with the love potion had never occurred.

"I don't see why it wouldn't" she answered as she saw Lopunny close her eyes and walk a few yards away from the two since their conversation was distracting her.

Helium pondered over the love potion incident. He figured that Twilmer didn't like showing her vulnerable, loving side and that's exactly what the potion had made her do. For as proud and tough as she acted, Twilmer was afraid of showing that side to anyone--even him. "Oh! Lopunny's got it!" Emily23 startled Helium out of his thoughts. He looked up and saw the brown rabbit beckoning them forward. The two of them crept forward and followed Lopunny until she held out a hand for them to stop. She listened again and pointed to a patch of daisies ahead. There were the three of them, making crowns out of flowers to the amusement of the Happiny.

"What do we do now?" Helium asked.

"You leave this to me," Emily23 winked as she slowly crept forward. She nodded at Lopunny who used a small blizzard attack. Snow fell softly around the three who looked up and around in confusion. "Hap?" Happiny looked confused. "Now use captivate to attract the father," Emily23 ordered.

"Wait, aren't all Chansey female?" Helium looked over at the two. Emily23 blushed, embarrassed that she forgot this fact. Lopunny had already used captivate and strangely, the two Chansey responded. Happiny didn't seem to find this odd at all. "Wait, what's going on?" Helium looked dumbfounded.

The two soon had their answer as the Chansey changed form and two Ditto stood drooling over Lopunny, who bounded behind Emily23 in shock. "You two are fakes!" She exclaimed. The two seemed offended at that and slithered off. Happiny moved to run after them, but tripped. "Happiny, are you a Ditto?" she asked. Happiny looked up and shook her head. She pulled at her skin as if to prove she was telling the truth. "I believe you, no worries."

"Why were those two impersonating Chansey? And what're we going to do now?" Helium groaned, flumping down on the grass.

Happiny looked around sadly. "Hap," she sighed.

"Happiny, do you want us to help you find your parents?" Emily23 asked. Happiny looked up at her and then looked away, shaking her head no. "Oh, I think I understand." She knelt down and took the Happiny in her arms, hugging the little pink ball.

"Huh?" Helium looked confused.

"I think Happiny lost her mother and father." Happiny nodded and cried in her arms. "Those two Ditto must have been trying to make her feel better by both turning into her mother." Emily23 held her and cooed softly, rocking her back and forth. The baby Pokémon soon settled down. "Happiny, can you help us out?" She looked up inquiringly. "Our friend is hurt very badly and I was wondering if you could help heal her."

"Can Happiny heal like Chansey?" Helium asked, shocked.

"Yeah, it's just not quite as strong, so Twilmer'll probably still feel weak. Happiny also doesn't have the power to make others happy like a Chansey."

"Happi!" Happiny nodded.

"Oh you will? Thank you so much." Emily23 spun the Pokémon around, who giggled gaily. "And if you want, you can even stay with us."

"I don't know if Twilmer would like that," Helium said.

"Oh nonsense, of course she will. Let's go!" Emily23 paraded off with Happiny and Lopunny leaving Helium and Vileplume to run to catch up with her.

ooo

"Can a Happiny really heal someone the same way a Chansey can?" Aura asked as she watched Emily23 kneel beside Twilmer with the small Pokémon. Victoria eyed the Happiny warily.

"Yeah, they have the ability to use refresh on other Pokémon and not just themselves. She won't be one hundred percent, so we'll have to probably stay in this area the rest of the day, but she'll be healed. She may be a little grumpy, though." Emily23 explained.

"Ah, so she'll be back to normal after this?" Guy raised an eyebrow. Drix snorted, but pretended it was a cough when Aura glared at him.

"Ready?" Emily23 sat Happiny down and she waddled beside Twilmer. She concentrated power into her hands and placed them on Twilmer's wound. Twilmer twinged in pain for a second and stirred from her sleep, but she soon relaxed as Happiny moved her hands down Twilmer's body. Twilmer glowed blue for a second and then she sat up with a groan.

"How do you feel?" Helium asked, voice full of concern.

"Like I was hit by a truck, but it's not as bad as before." Twilmer stretched and stopped as she expected a searing pain to come to her. She looked down at the spot where her leotard was torn and saw that the skin underneath was completely healed, save a small scar. "I don't hurt," she said in confusion. Happiny smiled proudly at this.

"Wow, we should keep that Happiny around. I bet it'll come in handy!" Aura knelt down and patted the Pokémon.

"Yeah, I told her she could stay with us," Emily23 bounced up and down, Lopunny mimicking her.

Twilmer lay back down and shut her eyes. "Sorry to rain on this parade, but I feel so weak. I think I'm just going to take a nap," Twilmer drifted off almost immediately after finishing her sentence.

"I doubt she's going to wake back up with the way she was hurt," Drix looked over at her, worry showing in his voice despite him acting as if he could care less about the former admin.

"I'm sleepy myself. It's been a really long day," Aura yawned, curling up beside Sparia. Drix looked at the distance between them when just the night before they'd slept close together. He shrugged it off and turned over without a word, laying his head on a stray root.

"Sounds good to me," Guy leaned against the root walls, Caesar perching atop his head. Trellaine did the same, a bit too close to Guy for his comfort, but Guy was used to this behavior in his comrade. Helium and Emily23 lay down near Twilmer. Victoria was using Twilmer's stomach as a pillow. Emily23 rested her head on one of Lopunny's fluffy ears since Lopunny was using the other one as a blanket.

ooo

Helium looked around the place the mountains. They'd decided to take a detour away from the angry magnet Pokémon. The landscape was very beautiful and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Ahead of him, Twilmer was nearly skipping; happy to be alive. Helium found this odd, but he assumed that perhaps Happiny had some happiness in her cure after all, just like her evolved forms.

Suddenly he heard a soft whistling noise. He looked up and his world fell apart. He saw Twilmer falling to the ground, an arrow straight through her heart. He looked in the direction the arrow had come from and saw Ontaro standing there laughing manically. "You bastard!" Helium cursed, running for him.

"I don't think so," a sickly sweet, heavily accented voice called softly. Dream and Nightmare stepped from the shadows grinning. She kicked him and down he fell, spiraling into nothingness.

ooo

Helium woke with a start. "A nightmare," he whispered aloud. He turned to look at Twilmer to assure himself, but she was gone. Victoria was still sleeping. Helium felt his heart leap into his throat as he stood up and hurried outside, leaving behind Vileplume who was drooling heavily in his sleep. "Twilmer?" he called out into the darkness. He ran through the forest and arrived in the field, calling her name repeatedly. "Twil-" he stopped as he saw her sitting on a rock. She had her cape pulled tightly around her like a blanket. Her outfit wasn't exactly the best for real life travel.

"Here," Helium walked over to her, holding out his robe. Twilmer jumped as she turned to look at him.

"Oh, thanks." She grabbed it and put it on. The fact that she didn't protest must have meant that even her ego was freezing in the night air. "Oh, here, you can take my cape." Twilmer held it out. Helium put it on with a laugh.

"I figured you'd be cold. What're you doing out here this late at night?" he asked, sitting on the rock as well; his back as to hers. The short distance between their backs was very noticeable to the two of them, both very conscious of the other.

"I woke up and couldn't sleep. I had a lot of thinking to do and I couldn't really do it in that stuffy cave, so I came out here to get some fresh air. I guess I lost track of how long I was gone."

"Nah, I just had a nightmare and noticed you were gone, so I got worried and had to find you."

"Heh, thanks."

"Thanks?" Helium asked confused.

"Yeah, thanks. And also--another shocker coming from me, I'm sure--I'm sorry, you know, for being an asshole to you. I was just scared after that whole potion incident and I don't like wearing my emotions on my sleeves, figuratively speaking as this outfit doesn't really have sleeves," she laughed nervously.

"Well, now that you're wearing my robe, you can wear your emotions on my sleeves," Helium laughed.

"Lame," Twilmer shook her head, amused. She then swung her legs over the rock and scooted herself beside Helium. He was shocked at the action, but didn't say anything. Instead he timidly placed his hand on top of hers, which she allowed, taking a deep breath. "You know, I've been so cautious ever since what's-his-face was an asshole to me that I've kept myself from living and loving." Twilmer tensed.

"I understand. I've been so busy studying and playing this game that I drifted away from everything as well. I know I'm a nice guy, but that's mainly because I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. Inside, I may be cussing someone out, but I'll still be nice to them. It's so easy to be rude and hateful--my parents are an attestment to that. Plus, it's more fun to be nice. Who says nice guys always finish last? Sorry, I'm rambling," Helium coughed.

"No, I don't mind hearing you ramble. I do it enough myself. It sounds like you could do more with wearing your emotions on your own sleeves. I'd say you can wear them on mine, but I'm not wearing any." Twilmer laughed. "Anyways, you know, I don't mind making myself vulnerable again." Twilmer slid off of the rock and stretched, cracking her spine.

Helium slid off as well, turning to face her. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, well, I'm not going to keep myself from my emotions any longer. Not to you. Helium, Demetrius, whatever other nicknames you may have, I love you." Twilmer bit her lip.

Helium wrapped his arms around her waist. "I love you, too." Twilmer smiled, the moonlight above giving her an ethereal beauty. She rested her arms on his shoulders and they leaned in for a kiss.

"I really don't know what's come over me tonight," Twilmer laughed, very much unlike her usual self. "I guess it's the moon or my life-threatening injuries."

"Whatever it is, I'm thankful for it." Helium held Twilmer close.

"Although, can we keep this from the others? Not that I'm ashamed of it, but I trust you with my emotions. I'm not sure if I want to trust them with everyone just yet."

"Of course," Helium smiled as they kissed once more.

ooo

Dream watched the two with a slight smile. "This is the first time I've felt any emotion in so long. I'd been so consumed by revenge that I forgot what it was like to make a dream come true."

"Mis?" Nightmare floated above Dream's head.

"I'm tired of this existence. Here, in this world, I am in the place I've always wanted to be and yet, I can't enjoy it, not like they can. I feel fake. I can't feel anything, not even feel the wind." Dream had bags under her bloodshot eyes and her hair was sticking up at odd angles.

"Mis," Nightmare rose higher into the sky and drifted away, disappearing into the night.

"Thank you for helping me make one last dream come true."

ooo

End Part 55

Look at me spoiling you with another part so soon. I really want to commission a picture of the kiss scene because the two of them changed clothing and I think it'd be interesting to see XD but yay, it's about time the two of them finally said something.


	56. Soothing the Savage Magnet

Pokémon World Online

Part 56: Soothing the Savage Magnet

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon or Satoshi Tajiri or any of the people who work for Nintendo. On a totally unrelated note, plane tickets are ridiculously expensive. That is all.

ooo

Twilmer stretched as she woke up. She still felt very tired because she hadn't gotten a lot of sleep last night, but they had wasted enough time with her injuries and it was time to get moving. She rubbed sleep out of her eyes and looked up to find two sets of eyes glaring at her. "Ahh, what the hell, guys?"

Emily23 giggled and Aura gave the former admin a sly look. "So, you look awfully tired today; have trouble sleeping?" Aura asked.

"What? How do you two know about whatever you think you know about?" Twilmer looked franticly between the two of them.

"Call it a woman's intuition," Emily23 winked.

"I think mine's broken, then," Twilmer groaned, "because I'm always unaware of all of your two's hijinx."

"Actually, you weren't the only one who couldn't sleep. I saw you leave when you thought everyone was asleep and then I saw Helium get up to look for you not long after. Considering you two never came back before I managed to fall asleep, I figured something was going on." Aura's deduction skills were spot on as always.

Twilmer cleared her throat, but didn't answer. The blush on her face; however, was enough answer for Aura. "Alright guys, we've wasted enough time, let's move out and try again," she commanded.

"How? I mean, all of those magnet Pokémon aren't going to let us pass and we're severely outnumbered," Drix scowled down at Twilmer.

"We'll wing it. There has to be a reason they're acting this way," Twilmer placed a finger to her chin thoughtfully.

"Hap?" Happiny walked over to Emily23 and tugged on her boot.

"Hmm? Oh! That's a good point. I have read that normally, Magnemite, Magneton, and Magnezone don't gather in very large numbers but live in small communities because all the magnetism from large groups hurts them. So something must have happened to make them all gather in one spot like that and something else must have happened to make them so agitated." Everyone looked at Emily23.

"Well, I can't argue with that," Guy looked impressed.

"Yes, but what's causing these two somethings?" Helium asked.

"Well, we're heading to Coronet ourselves to go after Satoshi, so maybe he pushed them out. Coronet, after all, is a big habitat for them because of the natural magnetism." Twilmer said as if that should be obvious to everyone.

"Well, okay, but what could be causing them to attack anyone who gets close?" Aura asked.

"Maybe they're in pain from being in one area," Drix suggested.

"I don't think that'd make them keep us from getting anywhere near them, though. I think Twilmer's right, we just need to go out there and figure out what that other something is!" Emily23 stepped beside Twilmer, Lopunny doing the same.

"I knew I liked this girl. Well, like I said before, let's go!" Twilmer led the way as everyone followed along grudgingly.

"I still say this is a bad idea," Drix rolled his eyes.

"Oh come on, like we had a better idea," Aura shrugged.

"I'm just impressed that this party did a little thinking ahead," Guy added his two cents, "because it seems to me that we always leap before we look."

"That's the best way to go! If we thought before we did anything stupid, we wouldn't be where we are now," Emily23 giggled.

"And that's a bad thing?" Guy raised an eyebrow.

"Alright guys, straight ahead," Twilmer called out. They could already see the swarm of magnet Pokémon. They moved about in agitated patterns and it they kept twitching as they floated. "Hey, look!" Twilmer pointed at them. "Look at how they keep looking to the center. They must be protecting something."

"Great, how are we supposed to get past a bunch of territorial Pokémon?" Aura scowled.

"With the right leverage of course," Emily23 said before jogging over to the magnet Pokémon, following Happiny.

"What is she doing?" Drix stared after her. "She better have a plan because I don't feel like rescuing anyone from them again."

"You didn't rescue anyone last time or else I wouldn't have been electrocuted to a crisp," Twilmer glared at Drix. She then put a hand to the pendant hanging around her neck. She couldn't understand why it didn't work. She'd used it just like she used to in PWO and nothing had happened. Drix's pendant seemed to work just fine, so why wasn't hers working? Was it because it changed her physical appearance? It couldn't have been just because it was an item from the game or else none of them would have weapons. Twilmer was absent-mindedly fiddling with her pendant as she lost herself to her thoughts.

"Hey, where'd Twilmer go?" Helium turned around, looking for the tiny admin.

"I'm right here!" she yelled in anger, or tried to. Instead what came out was "Pichu chu pi!!!"

Everyone looked down at a very angry little rodent wearing a pendant and holding a staff way too big for her. She dropped it in surprise and looked at her little body. "Twilmer?" Aura knelt down.

Twilmer ran in circles, flailing her arms. "Pichu!!! Pipipi chu!!!!" Twilmer franticly messed with the pendant, turning it this way and that. At last, the Pichu turned into a human once more. "What the heck? I guess I just needed to concentrate to use this," Twilmer looked down at the pendant. So it did still work...

ooo

"Happy!" Happiny marched determinedly forward, Emily23 tagging along behind with Lopunny at her heels.

"Be careful! I can't get to any of my potions if you get hurt," she said worriedly as the small Pokémon toddled forward.

"Hap, iny happy?" Happiny engaged one of the nearby Magneton in conversation. The three eyes were all bloodshot and half open as he buzzed a faint response. Happiny nodded and told Magneton something else. Magneton's eyes widened as it talked back to the small Pokémon in excitement before flying away.

"What's going on?" Emily23 asked as she watched the Magneton fly off to talk to the Magnezone overhead.

"Hap!" Happiny nodded, looking proud of herself.

"So the Pokémon are sick?" Emily23 looked confused. Happiny shook her head and motioned for her to follow as the Magneton returned. The magnet Pokémon buzzed angrily at Emily23, but Happiny quickly explained to them that the human wasn't here to hurt, but to help, and the Pokémon relaxed, standing aside and leaving a clear path for the three of them.

"Piny!" Happiny approached the center of the magnet Pokémon. Lying on piles of leaves were several young Magnemite. All of them looked as if they had seen better days.

Emily23 rushed forward and pressed the back of her hand right above the eye of one of them. "Oh my gosh, they're burning up with fever! Happiny, can you cure them?"

Happiny nodded, placing her hands on two nearby Magnemite and singing softly. They glowed a soft pink color before returning to their original metallic color. The two Magnemite rose from the leaf beds and began dancing about happily. "It worked! Keep going Happiny, I'm going to go tell the others what's going on!" Emily23 waved as she ran from the magnet cloud to the party, which was still gathered in the same spot, though they all looked very frazzled. "What happened here?"

"Apparently my charm still works. Hey, you aren't dead!" Twilmer looked quite surprised to see Emily23 standing before them without a scratch.

"Nope," she laughed. "It turns out that the Magneton and their friends were just protecting some of the younger Magnemite who had been injured and sick. Happiny is down there healing all of them."

"Will they let us pass now?" Aura asked, crossing her arms.

"I don't see why they wouldn't. I'll go ask!" Emily23 ran back to the magnet Pokémon. "Happiny, can you ask them if we can pass now?"

"Hap!" Happiny nodded and turned to a wary Magnezone who had been hovering close by. She asked and then turned to Emily23 and nodded.

"Thank you! I guess we should wait until you're done so you can come with us, huh?"

"Hap," Happiny shook her head and looked warily at the cave. "Happiny Hap."

"Yeah, I know you would do better here than in there. It's going to be dangerous." Emily23 stood, facing the cave. She felt a shiver travel down her spine as she remembered the last time they traveled the cave in the online world. Beyond that cave was Satoshi and who knows what he had managed to do by now. Happiny tugged on Emily23's leg. "What is it?"

"Happiny!" Happiny was holding out her stone from her pouch towards Emily23.

"Oh Happiny, I can't take your stone. You keep it." Happiny was insistant. "Well thank you, then. This'll be just the good luck charm we'll need." She kneeled down and hugged the little Pokémon before running back to her friends. "It's safe to pass now."

"About time, come on guys," Twilmer edged them forward. They walked cautiously by the magnet Pokémon and when they weren't attacked, they relaxed and walked by them and towards the entrance of the cave.

"I wonder if Giratina will be in there," Drix asked aloud.

"Who knows? So far this world has been really similar to the online one so I suppose anything is possible," Aura answered, arms still crossed. "All I know is that once we get through that cave..." Aura paused thoughtfully. What happened after they made it through the cave? What if Satoshi wasn't waiting for them or what if they were too late?

"Once we get through that cave, we'll have to fight like we've never fought before." Twilmer finished. "This is real life now and if we die, we die for good. There is no countdown to being revived and there are no items to use. All we have is ourselves, our weapons, and our partners." Twilmer smiled at Victoria.

Aura looked up at Sparia. They had been through so much together ever since she'd saved her as a Piplup. Aura ran her hand over the soft feathers on Sparia's right flipper and smiled. "I bet Sparia can kick more ass than Victoria."

"WEA!" Victoria glared at the two. Sparia smirked down at the little angry Pokémon.

"Oh yeah? We'll see about that," Twilmer grinned. It was just like old times. They had been through so much and there was no way that they had come all this way to fail. With renewed confidence, the party marched on.

ooo

End part 56

Sorry this took me so long x.x I only have school to blame for that. So much for the Christmas special I was going to write. It seems like we'll be at the end soon. I've enjoyed writing this so much and thank to all who have read it.


	57. What Doesn't Kill us Makes us Stronger

Pokémon World Online

Part 57: What Doesn't Kill us Makes us Stronger

Disclaimer: I don't own Nintendo or the usual things that obviously aren't mine. I had fun writing this part and it also made me really sad. I hope you enjoy it.

The party had been traversing Mt. Coronet for around an hour before any of them admitted that they were lost. The layout for this cave was completely different from the one that they experienced back in the online world. "I can understand there not being a Paris with a rip off French name and I can understand that egotistical grace master not being here, but why on earth has the cave changed?" Twilmer growled in frustration.

"Obviously he changed the cave," Drix shrugged.

"I don't understand why he would do that, though. I mean everything else has been exactly the same down to the last blade of grass, but why would this cave change? Satoshi doesn't seem imaginative enough to create his own areas," Aura puzzled.

"I think he changed the world, then. He probably put another cave here to make the final challenge more, well, challenging. After all, we haven't really ran into any problems so far, so where's the final challenge in that?" Emily23 suggested.

Trellaine cleared his throat. "Of course the hacker would know something," Twilmer said with a mild tone of interest.

"Well as is known among the players who enjoy knowing about the coding of the game they play, the beta terms for places are still in there but hidden and it takes some skill to make them appear. It's similar to using action replay on a video game for the Nintendo or whatnot. Anyways, a lot the towns have different names, but none of the natural places do, which is unusual since generally in the beginning of development, places have codenames or so. There are many theories for this, but I now know it's because they actually exist so they always had a name. Anyways, the name of this place is the only one to have a change. In the original planning, the cave was at first elsewhere and connected to a different event before being moved here. The original name was Turnback Cave." Trellaine explained.

"Turnback cave? Sounds about right since if you don't go the right way, it turns you right back around and you have to wait another day before trying to solve it again," Twilmer nodded.

"Not that you would know since you were never high enough to ever get there," Drix smirked.

"As an admin, I had far more important things to do, like suspending the accounts of players like you." Twilmer glared.

"Break it up you two," Aura sighed. "So they must have moved it here and changed its name to match the cave here, then. That sounds reasonable, but it doesn't help us get through this area any faster."

"Well, now we know we have to abandon the way we've been trying to get through this place and try something else." Emily23 turned to face them.

"Alright, then. Follow me everyone." Twilmer got up and started moving without looking back since she was so used to everyone automatically following her.

"Why should we go that way? You're not an admin leading a party anymore, you know. This is real life and we're heading to a battle we could very well die from. Isn't it about time we start acting as a group and less on your command?" Drix looked down at Twilmer, who was rather speechless at this turn of events for once.

Her speechlessness didn't last long, though. "How dare you say that! I have your best interests at my heart. Sure, in the beginning I just wanted to fix the glitch and get myself back to normal, but do you honestly think that I don't have your best interests at heart?" Twilmer's voice cracked, though she cleared her throat to cover up that momentary show of emotion.

"Drix, that was uncalled for," Aura turned and glared at him.

"It's true and you know it. We always blindly follow her to the next danger." Drix shrugged as if this should be common knowledge.

"When have I lead us into danger? Name one time," Twilmer challenged.

"Oh how do I count the ways? Well for one you almost got us fried to a crisp by the electricity of those Magneton, you have a crazy psycho bitch stalking you with the power to make our nightmares bite us in the ass, you're hero worship of Satoshi is a major concern since it kept you from realizing what an asshole he was sooner, and this whole crazy quest started because you were oh so loyal that you allowed for this glitch to infect the game and made us all end up where we are at this moment. We're not some destined heroes but a bunch of random people that have been dragged into a mess we had no business being in." Drix crossed his arms and stood his ground firmly.

"Where the hell did all of this come from?" Aura looked at him questioningly.

"I did some thinking while Twilmer had been hit by that lightning bolt. I was going to protect her, but something seemed to hold me back. I've been thinking about it ever since and that's the conclusion I've come to. This all started with a glitch she was sent to fix and so this all started with her. They used her because Dream wanted revenge and they knew she would obey them no matter what to fix this glitch and Dream would hunt her no matter what. Think about it." Drix looked at every person in turn.

"What does Dream have to do with any of this?" Guy asked, batting Caesar away who kept trying to land on his head. "If anything, I'm just as much to blame for this as Twilmer if Dream is your reasoning." Did Twilmer hear right? Was Guy actually standing up for her?

"Dream is some glitch thing and Twilmer was some glitch thing, so maybe the two of them meeting caused all of this." Drix shrugged again, which annoyed Aura.

"You weren't there, but Dream did something to make this world and the online world start to merge deep in the inner workings of this system. She used our nightmares to try and push us off the edge and become erased in the ones and zeros of the world," Aura yelled, taking a step forward.

"It's true; the inner workings of the game world were never simple. I have hacked, yes Twilmer, hacked, the codes of many games. I figure them out and then get bored. The inner workings of this game are so vast and fascinating and unlike anything I've ever seen before. It's like the game is alive and I suppose it is. I think Dream just hacked into the system to start erasing the computer bits and fill them with something else. I'm a computer master and even I don't know quite what is going on." Trellaine smoothed a wrinkle from his robe.

"This game appeals to so many people because there are so many aspects to get wrapped up in, like the cute creatures for me, the computer program for Trellaine, the plants for Helium, but I suppose the biggest thing that makes this game so enjoyable is that it's exactly like another world where we can go and lose ourselves, forgetting all the worries of real life," Emily23 said. It was true especially for her since she escaped here to get away from social pressure and her mother's demands.

"I can definitely agree with that. I completely gave up ever having a real life to play this game. I never logged out and even had a whole system worked out so I could play non-stop. PWO Corp paid handsomely so I saw no reason why I couldn't play forever. It was my job, my hobby, and my life and so in that way, I was no better than Dream." Twilmer looked away. "Although once I joined this party, I found a reason to engage myself in real life again." She blushed.

Helium walked over to her and took her hand. "Who cares how we got here, but we are here now. Are we going to forget Satoshi and live the rest of our lives here? Are we going to let him do unspeakable things to this world, our world, and the game that brought us all together? We either accept defeat and everything we were, or we fight and try and get our lives back. Twilmer may have lead us through dangerous times, but were you not there beside her the whole time cheering us on and believing in the cause?" Helium glared at Drix, who took a step back. Helium was rather terrifying when he was angry.

"Drix, listen, I know you lost some friends from the Underground in the battles and I know that you may not be who you would like in the real world, but all of us have lost something and through this game we've found it in each other. Stop thinking about proving yourself and blaming others for once and think about all of us, our lives, think about me." Aura looked into his eyes sincerely, putting a hand on his shoulder.

Drix brushed it off. "Fine, you're right. I guess I'm just scared," he admitted. It did feel good to get it off his chest. He walked away from Aura, ignoring the look she was giving him and beside Twilmer. "Lead on, then. We're burning daylight." Drix wasn't sure what to expect and he did still feel that this whole ordeal was partly Twilmer's fault, but he had to admit that he had grown attached to this group and everyone in it. He felt a need to protect them, but sometimes, like with Twilmer and the Magnet Pokémon, he wasn't able to. He hadn't been able to protect his friends the night of his car crash. Being weak was not acceptable to him and in real life, he had to admit that that was what he was. Not so much because he was in a wheel chair, but because he never accepted help from others and kept himself shut up in his room with the computer constantly on.

ooo

Dream watched from the shadows as the group went the wrong way yet again. Shaking her head, she took the correct way to get ahead. She still felt restless as she climbed the craggy rocks upward. As she climbed, snow began to blow in which let her know that the top wasn't too far away. The cold didn't bother her in her lace...or was it her tulle? It didn't matter anymore. She felt lightheaded the closer she got to the top. "For once, I need to make her dream come true..."

ooo

"Did you lead us to a dead end?" Guy raised an eyebrow.

"No, obviously you climb this," Twilmer pointed angrily at the stone wall in front of them.

"And how, do you presume, we do that?" He asked her.

"Rock climb?" she suggested weakly.

"Are any of our Pokémon even capable of learning that move?" Guy looked at all the Pokémon gathered. Weavile and Lopunny were too small and his Butterfree was definitely not capable. He doubted that Gengar, where ever it was, and Vileplume had that kind of ability. All that left was Empoleon.

"Sparia can take that cliff no problem. We'd just have to take turns." Aura turned to Sparia and she nodded, letting Aura know she was fine with this task. "I'll go first and see if I can see anything."

"No need for that just yet. Caesar, see if you can spot anything useful up there, will you?" Guy asked the Butterfree.

"Fleeeee," he cooed and flew up the cliff.

"Oh yeah, I forgot about your bug," Aura laughed. Guy rolled his eyes.

They waited what seemed to be ages before Caesar flapped down to them and lazily perched on Guy's head. "So, what'd you see?" he asked impatiently.

"Fleeeeee," he chirped.

"Hmm, interesting. It seems that we've gone the wrong way. All the passages up there lead to dead ends." Caesar nodded and stretched his arms out. "And he's sorry he took so long because an Onix attacked and he had to knock it out to get away."

"There's more to that Butterfree than meets the eye," Emily23 looked at the butterfly in awe. Caesar appeared to be enjoying the attention.

"So what do we do now?" Drix asked in a flat tone.

"We go back the way we came and try the other passage. It's all we can do." Twilmer said and began walking the other way, looking back cautiously to make sure the others were following. They did. Twilmer breathed a sigh of relief. She questioned herself many times, but honestly, none of that mattered now. All that mattered now was finishing all of this once and for all. "Hey, what are you guys going to do after this is all done?" Twilmer asked tentatively.

"Finally get a good night's sleep in an actual bed and not the dirt," Guy answered.

"I'm serious!" Twilmer glared at him over her shoulder.

"So am I," Guy crossed his arms.

"I guess if this game is out of commission, then I'll just find another system to code or something," Trellaine pondered aloud.

"I guess I should finally turn in that design for my manager. The poor man is probably having a heart attack over me," Aura smirked at the image.

"I think I'll give my butler a raise and actually use the rest of my apartment," Twilmer laughed.

"I'm going to New York," Helium winked at her. Twilmer rolled her eyes, but was smiling the entire time.

"Hell if I know, but I'm not going to sit around any longer," Drix said.

"I guess I'll just live a routine again," Emily23 smiled sadly.

"No, you're coming to New York as well," Aura corrected her. Emily23 smiled brightly.

"We're not going to have any of that if we don't hurry up," Drix grumped.

"Fine, then," Twilmer sniffed. They continued onward, over the craggy rocks. Snow began littering the rocks and ground around them as they moved upward. "Snow! We must be getting close!"

"And it's about time you did," a sickly, sweet voice chimed from the shadows. Everyone turned as Dream stepped out. "I thought I would have to wait weeks before you showed up. This cave isn't even that difficult to traverse and you had troubles." She smirked at the former admin.

"What are you doing here?" Twilmer hissed.

"Making your dreams come true, of course." Dream laughed before walking gracefully out of an opening that led to the icy outdoors.

"You get back here!" Twilmer yelled. Everyone followed behind her as she ran out into the open...

...and straight into Satoshi. "Fancy running into you," he said smoothly.

ooo

End Part 57

Aren't you just in love with me right now and my cliff hangers? And thus the final battle is about to begin. I've had this planned for about a year now. So, anyone have any guesses for what will happen? I appreciate reviews and thanks for reading!


	58. Apocalypse

Pokémon World Online

Part 58: Apocalypse

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon or Game Freak, so on and so forth. Thanks for the reviews last time, they made my day! This part is dedicated to the real Satoshi Tajiri because I feel bad I turned him into an evil jerk in this fic. Anyways, on with the show.

ooo

"Satoshi," Twilmer gasped, taking a quick step back.

"You're scared like a trapped rat, or rather like a scared Pichu," Satoshi sneered, standing tall before them. He had on a suit and was using a cane with a diamond perched on the top, wrapped in silver. "I can't say I wasn't expecting you, but you arrived much sooner than I planned. I haven't even finished making the preparations yet." Satoshi grinned as he walked forward, expecting them to follow.

Twilmer began to before Aura stopped her. "And just why should we follow you?" Aura asked; giving him a look fit to kill. "We're not here for small talk anyways."

"You should follow me because I can control both the flow of time and the space that surrounds you." Satoshi motioned to his cane. He held it up to show them that in addition to the diamond on top, a pearl wrapped in gold was attached to the bottom. Aura glared at him, refusing to move forward. "I would think you of all people would support me because after all, you gave up the woman you loved most for this game, right?" Aura stood firm, though Twilmer could see her shaking slightly.

"Leave her alone you cold, heartless bastard," Twilmer growled.

"Ah, of course, the Pichu with no life protects the woman who gave up hers. Then again, none of you really have a life anymore since playing this game, no?"

Twilmer was going to speak again but Aura shook her head. "We're not going to give him the pleasure."

"I tire of this game. If you won't follow me of your will, then I will have to change that," Satoshi said calmly as he hit the pearl against the ground and shifted the ground under their feet to cause them to shoot forward. "I knew you would see it my way," Satoshi grinned. "Now only time will tell if you listen. I suggest you do." He held the diamond threateningly above the ground.

"So you have both Dialga and Palkia?" Drix asked.

"Oh don't give away the end of the story." Holding up his cane, Satoshi parted the fog that surrounded the mountain top. Below them sprawled the Pokémon world which stretched far beyond what their eye could see. "Isn't it a beautiful sight? It's a land that thrives upon nature in a way that our world does not. Humans don't even exist here...yet. I plan on merging this world with the world I created based upon it with the help of Palkia and Dialga. In fact, I was just about to begin that process when you barged in, though your timing is impeccable because I need that glitch Twilmer; the one you wear on your neck."

"What glitch?" Twilmer asked with a bit too much desperation in her voice. Satoshi grinned at this.

"I've been observing you. I wanted to see if the pendant would work here and I figured what better way than sending a hoard of magnet Pokémon on you. Luckily, their young were easy targets."

"That's disgusting," Emily23 snarled. "How could you do that to them?" Satoshi didn't say a word as he tapped the diamond against the ground, making Emily23 age by at least sixty years.

"Stop it!" Twilmer and the others yelled.

"I told you to listen to me. Do not interrupt me again." He tapped the cane again and Emily23 was back to normal, though gasping slightly in surprise. Aura helped her regain her footing. "Anyways, I watched you and at first I was disappointed that it didn't work, but I knew you and your curiosity. You didn't disappoint by continuing to fiddle with that thing until it did work. A bit of digital data in this real world can do many things. This world is unspoiled so any technology is a huge advancement and as such, I only need that initial glitch. I knew you hero worshipped me and I knew you would take that glitch where ever I commanded. You had the enemy I needed thanks to choosing you over her and you had the loyalty. I couldn't ask for a better servant and by paying you, you stayed in this game like the obedient servant you are. Now I need that pendant to call forth the digital god and merge him with the real god and then once I gain that I can completely and truly finish what I've begun. I'm done now, by the way," he smirked.

"So you plan to trap everyone who plays the game here against their will? All those children separated from their mothers and all those who are married separated from their significant others." Aura looked away thoughtfully before finishing, "Which is what this game has always done in a way. It's so addicting that sometimes it causes us to miss the events and people we care most about in real life."

"This is ridiculous! You've been using me like that?" Twilmer still couldn't grasp everything he said.

"I've planned things out for years ever since I began catching bugs in nets and hungered for something more. I wanted a world where you could catch more than just bugs, but creatures who could be your pets and companions. How I found out about this world isn't important. If I have to defile the gods of this world to make my vision a reality, then so be it. I will be the god of this land in their place and rule it with technology."

"We can't let you, I'm afraid. You see," Drix pulled out his sword and attached his pendant, the sword glowing as it became covered in flames, "we don't share your same opinion. People shouldn't be forced into this world and this world should be left natural."

"After all this game has cost me, I can't let it cost me my life." Aura unsheathed both of her katanas as Sparia flexed her wings.

"I can't let you hurt any creatures or humans in any way," Emily23 raised her taming pole, Lopunny getting into position behind her.

"Messing with nature isn't right," Helium pulled out his powders, Vileplume drooling in agreement.

"Because of you, I'm stuck in some infernal world and away from my own," Guy and Cesar glared at Satoshi.

"No more digital world means no more hacking," Trellaine sighed, Gengar appearing at his side.

"I've spent too much of my life in this game and it's time I get that back," Twilmer pulled out her staff and Victoria held up her claws.

"You guys are just too much. We'll see just how tough you really aren't. I don't need you alive for this part of my plan and your usefulness to me has ended now that you are here." Satoshi raised his cane and Dialga and Palkia landed on either side of him with a thump. Their eyes were blank. The diamond on Dialga's chest was gone and the pearls on Palkia's arms were missing as well. "Attack!"

ooo

"You have to see this!" Dr. Johnson exclaimed to one of his colleges. He waved the short-haired woman over from where she had been fiddling with a plant that had been dying.

"Is it the comatose patients?" Dr. Pilarz asked. She knew everyone was watching the two of them like a hawk and they received emails daily from the other hospitals that had patients in a similar condition.

"Their hearts are racing! It's like they've been in a race or something," he puzzled this out, knowing how ridiculous it sounded. "I mean, there have been documentations of similar occurrences in comatose patients, but not like this, or I haven't read anything."

"Hang on; let me email the other hospitals." She hurried to the computer, but before she got there, the phone rang. "Hello?" she answered. She nodded and talked briefly before hanging up. "It's not just us! That hospital in Maryland has called and said that they are experiencing similar things with their patient. I've got to call the others. What could be going on?" She quickly dialed the number to Potruce Medical Center.

"What could be going on?" Dr. Johnson pondered aloud before shouting out for help.

ooo

Palkia warped the space around him as he shot out orbs of purple light at the party. Twilmer jumped and dodged, but even with her speed, she nearly took a hit. Gengar was hit and fell to the ground. "You okay?" Trellaine asked, his voice uncharacteristically worried. Gengar grinned and nodded as he pulled to his feet.

"They're both part dragon; Emily, doesn't Lopunny know ice attacks?" Twilmer asked as she dodged a blast from Dialga who was floating above them.

"Yeah, she knows ice beam," Emily23 shouted over a roar-of-time attack from Dialga.

"Alright then." Weavile jumped over to Sparia and Lopunny. The three of them charged ice beam attacks and fired them at Dialga. Dialga roared as the attacks hit. His back was covered in ice. He shook his back and the ice fell off forcefully. Sparia shielded them with her wings, using protect. The ice shards bounced harmlessly to the ground.

"Anyone have a plan on how to quiet two gods?" Drix asked sarcastically as he dodged a blast.

"Bring in another god?" Aura suggested, looking at Twilmer.

Twilmer looked down at her Medallion and sighed. "I wish it were that easy. I wish I could summon a god whenever I wanted, but the medallion doesn't work that way. Plus it was a blessing from a digital god and not the real one."

"Either way, it worked here even though this is the real world." Aura dodged Dialga's tail as he tried to slam her.

"It never worked on my command before, so why should it now?" Twilmer jumped beside Aura and the two used katanas and staff to try and block Dialga's tail. They stopped him and barely dodged a blast.

"How else do we summon a god? We can't take them on ourselves!" Aura tried to yell over a time roar.

"Pray," Emily23 looked over at them.

"Pray?" Guy raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I mean, how else do you talk to God?" Emily23 asked.

"Enough of this foolishness," Satoshi turned his cane, commanding Palkia. "It's time we finished this merger once and for all." Palkia roared and fired a spacial rend at the sky. It struck and the clouds began to part. A series of 0s and 1s could be seen where the spacial rend had hit the sky.

"We have to hurry!" Aura shouted.

"Pray!" Emily23 shouted. She fell to her knees, hands clasped in front of her. Lopunny did the same. She prayed to herself, her lips moving with her words.

"Oh, what the hell," Aura kneeled down beside her, Sparia taking a knee as well. Twilmer sighed and followed suit, but Victoria stayed back. Helium kneeled beside Twilmer, Vileplume at his side.

"I'm not praying. It never does any good," Guy mumbled.

"I'll keep you company," Trellaine laughed. Guy rolled his eyes. Cesar fluttered over and paid his respects as did Gengar. "It looks like the Pokémon believe in God."

"That's because it's their god." Guy looked away. "Mine never answered anything."

"I'm out, too." Drix gripped his pendant.

"Drix, come on, it's all we have left," Aura looked up at him. "For me?"

Drix swayed and then stood firm. "I'm not going to give up my convictions." Aura looked up at him for a second and then turned away, praying more fiercely than she did before. "This is a waste," Drix scoffed, pulling out his sword and using the pendant to make its blade become covered in flames.

"I'm hungry," Trellaine sighed and pulled an orange from his sleeve. "Wow, I wasn't expecting that to work."

"The rift!" Twilmer looked up. "The rift is trying to combine this world with the digital world so we must be able to..." Twilmer trailed off as she pulled a potion out.

"We can get into our inventories!" Aura beamed. She quickly sifted through hers, happy to see all her precious items back in place. Including one item in particular. It was a flute. "An azure colored flute that was used to aid in the worship of a deity. That's it!" Aura pulled the flute out. It was one of the rarest items in all of PWO. It was only attainable for a short time when the game first opened, but the event it was linked to had been locked so the item was now useless. "Can anyone play flute?"

"I can!" Emily23 shouted. "I play flute in band!" Aura tossed the flute over to her and she caught it. "What do I play?" She looked at Aura as a fiery strike from Drix blasted a roar of time out of the way.

"Here, it came with some music." Aura held it up so the force from the blasts couldn't blow it out of her hands.

"This is agonizing to watch. Dialga, please speed things up." Satoshi calmly commanded.

"Hurry!" Aura shouted. Dialga began charging a large roar of time, aiming it at the rift. Emily23 took a deep breath and started to play. The melody was haunting and royal sounding. Palkia looked around.

Dialga finished charging his attack and fired it at the rift. "We were too late." Twilmer's heart fell. Suddenly a golden beam cut the attack off and hit Dialga, who roared in pain. The clouds opened beside the rift. A golden light shone down to the ground. The party watched in awe as Arceus came galloping from the clouds. His golden hooves touched the ground and the dust was sent flying away from him. The ground burst into life where his hooves touched. Beautiful flowers sprouted and wrapped around his legs. "That's the real god of all Pokémon. The being that created this world."

"Arceus," Satoshi whispered. "Long ago I tried to create you and I failed. You have lost your crown. I'm now the creator using the infinite expanse of technology. Go, Dialga and Palkia!" The two ignored his call, kneeling before Arceus, their creator. "Boys, you seem to forget what I have here." Satoshi held up his staff. Dialga roared and used a roar of time on Arceus. Arceus easily dodged the blast, but did not look happy.

"_Quare operor vos defy mihi?_" Arceus narrowed his eyes at Dialga.

"Is has meus vox." Dialga roared. Palkia held up his arms and Dialga stood firm, puffing out his chest.

"What are they saying?" Twilmer asked.

"I think it's Latin. It sounds like the words we had to learn when I was learning about different kinds of chemicals and plants. I know a little bit, but not enough to really be helpful," Helium said.

"Well make something up then. Do you have any idea what they're saying?" Guy asked his fellow herbalist.

"I think Arceus asked them if they were defying him or why they were defying him and Dialga told them it has something to do with something Satoshi did to them. I'm guessing the diamond and pearl." Helium sighed. "This is all getting so confusing."

"Enough trying to figure out things. We need to do something." Emily23 eyed Satoshi's staff. "And I know just the thing." She ran, hiding behind a rock. "Don't follow me," she warned Lopunny and continued onward. Lopunny looked after her worriedly. Emily23 ran and kept hiding behind rocks, though she didn't know if it was exactly necessary since Satoshi's gaze was on the battle of the gods before him. She finally got close enough and grabbed his staff.

Satoshi looked at her, his look fit to kill. "How dare you, little bitch. Give that back to me this instant."

"Emily!" Aura shouted.

"No," Emily23 looked away and ran. Lopunny jumped up to help her. "Stay!" She commanded. Lopunny shrank down. She'd never heard Emily23 shout at her like that before.

"She's insane," Twilmer ran over to her.

"Palkia!" Satoshi commanded. Palkia looked at him and then at Emily23 who was holding the staff.

"Palkia, no!" she shouted as Satoshi ran after her and grabbed her arm, twisting it. She shrieked in pain.

"Do it now! Spacial rend!" Satoshi commanded, pulling her arm back further until a sickening pop was heard.

Emily23 cried out in pain. "Don't!" Palkia cried out and fired a spacial rend at both of them, though aiming more for Satoshi. The blast hit both of them.

"Emily!" the party shouted. Arceus stopped fighting and looked curiously over at the two as the cloud of smoke from the blast disappeared. Emily23 was lying on the ground, her arm at an unnatural angle. Satoshi was keeping himself up by struggling to hold onto the staff. Aura began to run forward.

"Your valiant efforts were wasted," he rasped. He stood up slowly. "Now Palkia and Dial--" his words were cut off as he coughed up blood. Aura smirked. While he had been bragging, she'd run over and pierced him with both of her katanas. Satoshi dropped his staff.

"This is for Madeline and all the pain you caused me and everyone else. Game over." Aura pulled her katanas out. Both of them were covered in blood. Satoshi stuttered, spitting blood. He stepped forward and fell to the ground. Aura picked up his staff. The diamond and pearl fell out to the ground. As they hit, they rolled over to Dialga and Palkia. Dialga leaned down and touched the diamond with his nose and Palkia picked the pearl up in his hands. They both glowed as the gem returned to its rightful spot.

"Emily," Aura dropped her katanas and ran over to her fallen friend.

"Is she okay?" Twilmer asked, running over to her as well, pulling out every potion and healing item she owned.

"That won't work," Guy looked away from them.

"Thank you," a booming voice pierced their hearts and minds. Everyone looked up as Arceus walked over to them, flowers trailing behind in his wake. "Whatever mess happened here, you dealt with it swiftly. I think I can help you to show my appreciation." Arceus bowed. All the Pokémon, even Victoria, bowed in return. Lopunny hopped over to her partner, tears in her eyes.

Suddenly the wind picked up furiously as the rift began to widen. Arceus looked up, his eyes widening. The 0's and 1's began to move faster. "The rift!" Trellaine looked up. "At this rate, I'd say that the world will be swallowed before too long unless we do something."

Arceus took a step forward and stopped, in pain. He began to glow green as the rift winds blew around him. "What's going on?" He roared loudly, which caused the ground to quake.

"Damn it," Aura shouted.

"You stay with Emily, I'll figure this out. Twilmer ran ahead, but she began to glow as well. Her pendant was hot to the touched and was burning her chest. She tried to pull it off, but it was stuck. She cried in pain as she began to shrink and grow...yellow. Twilmer stood, though she wasn't far from the ground. "Oh you have got to be kidding me!" She shrieked, discovering that she was a Pichu once more.

ooo

End Part 59

Now do you really think I'd end this story without one more cliffhanger? Don't worry, we'll find out just what happened next time. Yes, the Latin here is probably wrong, but it seems fitting that deities speak Latin. I asked some friends who knew a bit and that's what I got. I didn't want to use it too much so it wouldn't be this hard to understand thing or something. Anyways, don't forget to review.


	59. Awakening

"Happy Birthday Emily!" Emily's mom and dad waved noisemakers in the air. Emily laughed as she blew out her candles atop her birthday cake. No matter how old she got, she would always love having birthday parties.

"How's our fourteen year old doing?" Her dad asked, getting a knife out to cut the cake.

"Glad to have the two of you together," she smiled. Her mom and dad stopped, glancing nervously at each other.

"Honey, you do know we're not getting back together, but we're just having your birthday together for you, right?" Her mom asked, taking several steps away from her dad.

"Of course I know that," Emily said quickly. She always did, but it didn't keep her from hoping that they would get back together. The three ate cake in silence before handing Emily her gift. It was a small, rectangular item. She quickly tore off the brightly colored paper and squealed in delight. "No way! Pokémon World Online! How did you guys know?" Emily smiled, turning to each of them.

"It's all you talk about lately." Her dad laughed. "Now run along and play your game." The two watched as their daughter ran up to her room. "Man I need a drink."

"Well I'm sorry," her mom sighed, grabbing some vodka from the wine locker. "Want some?"

"Nah, I'll just head to the bar. No offense, but I don't want to be here longer than I have to. Have fun with your boyfriend," he sneered before slamming the door. Emily's mom didn't say anything as she poured herself a glass. She considered the glass for a second before draining the entire thing.

o

"Let's see...I need to choose a screen name." Well, she liked her name, so she decided to use Emily. "Rats. It's taken," she sighed. A pop-up suggested adding numbers at the end. That sounded like a good idea, but what numbers should she use? "23 of course!" Emily typed it in and was accepted. "February 3rd, 1991. They would have been together 16 years today if they'd stayed married."

ooo

"I got here as soon as I heard!" Emily's father huffed as he ran into the hospital room. "Is she okay, Donna?"

Donna looked up. "Oh Richard, I don't know. I've been up with her for the past two days. I haven't slept at all. I'm afraid if I do, something will happen." She sighed, looking frazzled.

"You don't look like you feel well. Come on, I'll buy you coffee." Richard led his former wife out to the cafeteria for coffee and a bite to eat. "They said that there are others in her same situation. Is this really all from that video game? Millions of people play it, so why have only six suffered and why is one of those our daughter?" He held his head in his hands.

"It has to be something else. Maybe it's all just a coincidence." Donna stared off into space, absent-mindedly sipping her coffee.

"Maybe, but maybe this isn't." Richard looked over at his wife. The years seemed to melt away with the need of their daughter before them. "It reminds me of the old days when we'd take her to the hospital for some sickness she'd picked up. I swear she got every illness humanly possible."

Donna laughed. "Yeah, and then we'd take turns taking the day off of work to sit with her. She was our life."

"And we lost sight of each other because all we could see was our little girl. There was no us. There was Richard-and-Emily and Donna-and-Emily, but there was no Richard-and-Donna." It was true. They loved their daughter so much that their love faded.

"We better go. Something might have been cleared up," Donna yawned as she stood up, slouching to the elevator. They rode together to her room silently, but it wasn't an uncomfortable silence. "How's our daughter?" She asked the doctor when they arrived back at the room.

"Same," she sighed. Just then, her pulse began to slow quickly. "Emergency, we need a defibrillator stat. Hurry, hurry, pulse is dropping fast. Someone contact the other hospitals and compare results."

"Compare results? She's a fucking human, not some science experiment!" Richard yelled. The doctor ignored him as she pulled out the pair of paddles and used them on Emily. Donna cried onto Richard's shoulder as Emily's heart rate was rapidly stopping.

"Please, God, no," Donna sobbed.

ooo

Pokémon World Online

Part 59: Awakening

Disclaimer: Well, never thought we'd get to this moment. I don't own Pokémon, but I do own the ideas and such here. This part is dedicated to all my loyal readers and readers who just discovered my fic. You've made me a better writer and for that, I'm very thankful. This may be the last part of the journey, but there will be one more part; an epilogue. I've had the epilogue planned since the beginning and it will be surreal to actually write it. Heck, it's surreal to be writing this part. The final chapter in our heroes'' story; Awakening! Also, after I complete this fic, I plan on going back and doing major edits, grammar and flow wise. Thank you so much for reading and keep sending those reviews my way!

ooo

"This cannot be happening," Twilmer moaned as she looked at her tiny frame. Before her, Arceus reared his head back as he stopped glowing. She looked back and noticed that the others were frozen in time behind her.

"It is happening. The two worlds are in direct alignment right now. One false step and the digital world can overcome this one and vice versa." Arceus looked at Twilmer. "I'm sure you can tell by now, but I'm the same glitch in the system that made so many of the things that happened possible, though indirectly. The more direct cause would be her," Arceus motioned with his head toward the woman who had just stumbled onto the mountain top.

"You," Twilmer spat, looking distastefully at Dream.

"I...feel." She smiled as she grabbed at the rocks at her feet. "I can feel these."

"That's because right now we're digitized bits of data. You gave up your form a long time ago. You cannot feel anything outside of the cold, hard metal that claimed your life. You need to listen too, Twilmer. You and Dream are not as different as you may think."

"Okay, fine, we're digital. I assume that's why all the 'real' people are frozen. Why am I not frozen? I assumed I was real, too." Twilmer looked up angrily.

"You are real as a human. As a Pichu, you're a glitch too. Three glitches; god, man, and Pokémon. Satoshi made you and I. Dream was made by someone else."

"By a fire?" Dream looked up.

"Born through flames, but you were set about your mission by..."

"I can move!" Guy exclaimed as he staggered forward. "Why can I move? What's going on?"

"I think I know." Dream walked up to him. "You have to be the one who sets me free. Being here, I realized I am not real. I tricked myself. You helped me decide to make dreams come true except for my own dream. I want to be set free."

"How am I supposed to know how to do that? Why don't you ask the almighty glitch over there?" Guy glared at Arceus.

"I don't know." Arceus looked at Twilmer. "Though I must ask you a similar favor. Destroy me so things can be set the way they are supposed to be."

"Why me?" Twilmer asked.

"This was your mission, was it not? I thought you might want to finish it. You started all that time ago so you could destroy the glitch. It's only fitting if you complete that in the end." Arceus roared loudly. "Hurry, the digital world won't stay at bay for long." Arceus lunged forward, pinning Twilmer to the ground with a hoof. Twilmer felt a strange sensation as she grew and became human again. "I have absorbed your glitch. I can't...control...please hurry..."

Arceus roared again and rose into the air, firing down a barrage of beams. Twilmer dodged them all, jumping back and grabbing her staff. She touched Victoria in the process. "Wea!" Victoria saluted.

"Alright!" Twilmer grinned. "It's you and me." Twilmer lunged forward, dodging Arceus' judgment. Victoria jumped and Twilmer held out her staff. Victoria used it like a springboard and unleashed an ice beam at Arceus. It was a direct hit, but he easily shook it off.

"What the heck am I supposed to do? I don't have any fancy swords or anything." Guy reached into his pocket and pulled out some powders. He threw them at Dream, but nothing happened. She sneezed. "Okay, that didn't do anything."

"If violence won't work, try something else," she suggested.

Guy dodged a beam of judgment. "It would be easier without the god of death hovering above us." Guy looked back at his frozen partner. "Cesar!" He called. The Butterfree slowly became unfrozen and fluttered over to Guy. "Try and stun that god." Cesar nodded and flew up, dodging a judgment from above and Ice beam from below.

"Victoria, watch out for anything coming from above." Twilmer shouted, just as a Judgment attack headed straight for her.

"Plume!" A solar beam blocked the attack just in time. Twilmer turned and saw Vileplume lumbering over to her side. Vileplume tapped his foot and then shot a flurry of cherry blossom petals at Arceus.

"His defense must be through the roof, and those glitches aren't helping us either," Twilmer looked up and watched as the petals didn't even seem to faze him. There had to be something she could do. She took her staff and leaned back, then hurled it forward with all her might. It fell just short and landed several feet away. Twilmer ran to retrieve it, dodging attacks along the way. Arceus roared loudly. Twilmer covered her ears in pain. "Ugh, that must be hyper voice."

Guy looked over at Dream and felt a twinge of sympathy. He has told her to make dreams come true, but never would he have guessed that it would have went this far. Overhead, Butterfree managed to use stun spore, but Arceus used refresh and fired a blast at Cesar in anger. "That didn't work. Maybe attacking directly isn't the best way."

"If he is a glitch, he is data. Data can always be controlled somehow, no?" Dream looked over at Trellaine.

"It seems the hacker has come in handy. Thanks," Guy looked over at Dream and before he thought much on it, he gave her a hug. Dream sighed contently and then started to dissipate into ones and zeros.

"Kindness feels wonderful. I have not been shown it in so long. Thank you," Dream smiled at him. She looked rather frightened as she disappeared, but who wouldn't be terrified with facing the prospect of death? Guy watched as the data was sucked into Arceus and then ran over to Trellaine, shaking his frozen frame.

Trellaine slowly was pulled out of the frozen stupor. "When Arceus gives you the cold shoulder, he really freezes you," Trellaine joked.

"Ha-ha, funny," Guy rolled his eyes. "Look, Arceus has absorbed the glitches because the digital world is in line with this one or something. Anyways, get to work you hacker."

"You want me to try and weaken Arceus?" Trellaine looked at Guy.

"Yes. Do anything you can. Hurry up because the digital world is causing more damage by the second to this real world." Guy ran off, grabbing a powder from his inventory. "Cesar, try and dump this on Arceus." The Butterfree nodded and flew off.

"I've never seen quite a complex code in all my days. It appears unfinished, too. This should be fun."

"Whatever, just hurry," Twilmer yelled as she dug through her inventory while dodging attacks to find anything useful. "Too bad Aura wasn't unfrozen." Twilmer looked over at her just as Drix stepped beside her. "I didn't know you'd been unfrozen."

"I'm just full of surprises." Drix pulled out his own pendant, which kept making little jerking motions toward Arceus as Drix held it tightly. "I think Arceus wants to absorb my little taste of glitch as well. I'd rather no one have her than that goat god." Drix took his pendant and stabbed it. It glowed red before the data streamed from it and reformed. Before him, Salamence formed from the data. Drix was struck speechless. "Is that you?" Salamence roared happily. "It is you!"

"Cut the reunion short. We've wasted too much time." Twilmer glared at them. Above Arceus roared in pain. Twilmer looked over at Trellaine, who gave her a thumbs up. "Alright then."

"Climb aboard Salamence!" Drix yelled.

"Are you sure?" Twilmer looked at him in disbelief.

"This is your battle." Twilmer nodded and took off. They flew above Arceus. "I'll use my staff if you can use your attacks." Salamence roared to show she heard. Twilmer jumped from Salamence's back onto Arceus' and took her staff, jumping and hitting him in several different places. She moved quickly to avoid the flamethrowers from Salamence. Cesar fluttered over Twilmer and threw the powder on his head. Arceus roared and then created a purple orb that expanded the entire field. Salamence tried to stay up, but had to land. Arceus crashed to the ground. Twilmer was flung off his back and fell on the ground. She was more shaken than hurt. Cesar fell to the ground beside them.

"He used gravity to keep everyone on the ground." Guy observed. Arceus disappeared for a second and reappeared behind Guy, striking him down. Cesar fluttered uselessly on the ground. "Damn extreme speed." Guy spat on the ground; blood mixed in with his saliva.

"Unless Trellaine can weaken him more, what can we do?" Twilmer looked at Drix.

"Empoleon." Sparia raced forward, creating a wave of water and flinging it at Arceus. It was a direct hit, but again, it didn't do much damage.

"This is getting ridiculous." Twilmer began throwing most of her items at the god in hopes something would do something. If anything, they just confused him, which made him angry.

"He's mad with power. There's too much on his being right now and that's why his attacks are so powerful. The glitches are pushing him to his max limit. Instead of weakening him, if I power him up, it will bring the same result, but will take a lot quicker." Trellaine looked up at Twilmer.

"Oh great. To defeat a god we make him more powerful?" Trellaine nodded. "Fine, just do it quickly." Trellaine gave her a thumbs up and then continued. Twilmer stood and watched as Arceus' judgment began to impale the ground around them, creating small craters. "Oh this is not going to end well."

"Twilmer, catch!" Aura shouted as she was unfrozen. Twilmer turned and caught what looked like the gem from a Deoxys. "This rare item can cause weightlessness, but if gravity is being used, it reverses the effects." Aura shouted her explanation, refusing to leave Emily23's side. Twilmer nodded and activated the item. Cesar stood and began fluttering happily. Salamence roared, flying over to her.

"Take Drix and have him use his huge sword to deflect blows while we wait this thing out." The two nodded and took off. Arceus fired a hyper beam down at Twilmer at a very high speed due to the increasing power. Twilmer knew she wasn't going to have time to dodge. She closed her eyes, waiting for impact, but felt a hand on her arm.

She opened her eyes and saw Helium smiling at her. "I thought I'd lend you a hand." He said softly.

"Thanks," Twilmer smiled back, putting her hand on his for a second before racing toward Arceus. "Victoria, freeze the next hyper beam." Victoria nodded. She waited until the last second and froze it. The beam was super wide. The ice that encased it shattered and the ground rumbled from the pure power. "Are you done yet?" Twilmer shouted.

"Now!" Trellaine shouted.

"This is it, everyone gather so he'll charge a final attack." Everyone, except Aura and Emily23, gathered in a big group. Arceus charged a full power hyper beam to take care of them all in one blow when he stopped. His pure power was absorbed back into his body. He couldn't take it and began to bloat. He started to fall slowly from the sky, growing bigger until he finally exploded. Once the smoke cleared, everyone looked up to see the true Arceus glowing in his almighty glory.

"Thank you," he said simply.

"We did it. I'm not sure exactly what we did, but we did it!" Twilmer jumped up and down.

"You just destroyed the three glitches that sought to combine this world with the digital one Satoshi created. He had always wanted a world to rule of his own. He wanted to be left alone, and so he was. He developed his game when he read a book about this world. Surprisingly few people know it actually exists, thinking it is just a world created for the game. He managed to somehow create a portal connecting the worlds. He sought to turn nature to machine and machine to nature. Obviously things are not supposed to work that way." Arceus looked down at them, glowing even brighter. "My true power is returning now that all digital interference is gone."

"That's good and all, but how do we get back?" Twilmer asked. "We can't stay here."

"All you have to do is wake up. You are souls trapped in a world you don't belong. You are like ghosts here." Arceus nodded.

"What about the Pokémon? What about the game?" Twilmer asked desperately.

"So many questions young one. The digital world is still there, but it is damaged. The company that created it is gone and the power behind it is missing. It will take a lot to get it back up and running, but for the moment it is still there. The Pokémon are real as you are and I am. They have turned into living things under my protection since they stepped into this world. They can stay here and live, but if they do, you will never be able to see them again. Or you can condemn them to be data in a broken game that you can visit again and again." Arceus eyed them.

"So we have to say good bye?" Drix looked over at his newly revived Salamence. He had to say goodbye so soon after saying welcome back?

"Yes. Don't take too long, though. I have to send you back soon since you don't belong here."

"I have a question." Aura looked up at Arceus. "What will happen to Emily?"

Arceus paused. "I am unfamiliar with the lives of humans. I will still send her back." With that, he left to give them some privacy.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Aura asked, frustrated.

"I think it means that she may still have a chance," Helium said reassuringly.

"Yeah," Aura left her side and walked over to Sparia. Everyone else turned to their respective Pokémon.

o

"I can't believe I have to say goodbye." Aura felt hot tears sting the corners of her eyes. Sparia had been her companion through so much. "I'm glad you're alive, but I'm going to miss you so much." Sparia wiped one of Aura's tears away with her wing. Aura smiled and hugged the big penguin.

"Empol?" Sparia eyed her.

"I'll be fine. For every goodbye, there's a hello." Aura paused. "Though I must admit this doesn't feel like good bye."

"Empoleon," Sparia shook her head and grinned.

"This feels more like a see you later."

o

"I guess this means no more code munching for you." Trellaine looked over at his Gengar, who had helped him with the data crunching in the final battle.

"Gengar," Gengar shrugged and then looked expectantly at Trellaine.

"Alright. I suppose you've earned one for the road." Trellaine tossed an orange at Gengar, who grabbed it and disappeared.

o

Guy let Cesar land on his head. "I guess I won't have to put up with this anymore."

"Fleeeeeee," the Butterfree cooed.

"Well, s'long then." Guy reached up and patted Cesar's head.

o

"Wea!" Victoria fired an ice beam at Twilmer before doing a flip coming at her with both claws. Twilmer blocked with her staff and held it forward quickly, almost hitting the Weavile.

"I'll miss training with you, Twilmer sighed.

"Weavile, wea," Victoria nodded sadly.

"Here, take my necklace. Maybe you can think of me every now and then when you wear it." Twilmer took it off and put it around Victoria's neck.

"Weavile!" Victoria took off her own necklace.

"Your leg, though!" Twilmer looked at her.

"Wea," Victoria jumped up and down, landing on the leg.

"True. That was because of messed up data. You're real now." The necklace was too small to be a necklace for Twilmer, but it made a nice bracelet. "I'll never forget you."

"Wea," Victoria nodded.

"I...love you," Twilmer smiled, hugging the weasel close to her. Victoria closed her eyes, hugging Twilmer back.

o

"Goodbye Vileplume," Helium waved as Vileplume toddled off after a smell. "What an odd chap you were," he laughed.

o

"Lopunny," Lopunny looked down sadly at her partner. She held her hand between her paws and nuzzled her fingers. Lopunny started crying and bounded off.

"Wea!" Victoria shouted after her. Sparia held out a wing and shook her head.

"I guess we're ready now," Twilmer sighed.

Arceus pranced towards them majestically. "So you are. It's time for you to wake up now." Arceus' eyes glowed and Twilmer's eye lids felt heavy. She felt her head spinning. She closed her eyes to stop the sensation as everything went black.

ooo

"Heart rate is going up. There seems to be an increase in brain waves from them both. Someone contact the Maryland hospital and see what's going on there." Voices all around could be heard muttering nonsense about signs of vitality and heart rate. Twila groaned as she opened her eyes.

"We made it," Twila looked around. She saw a woman with short hair in the bed next to her.

"Yeah we did," the woman said groggily.

"Aura, is that you?" Twila asked.

"Of course, Twilmer," Eskarine smiled.

Twila moved to stretch her arms when she noticed a glint of silver on her wrist. It was Victoria's necklace.

ooo

The End

Author's Note: Well, not quite. There's going to be a small epilogue after this, but this moment I never thought would come. My baby is going to be finished soon. I just can't believe that their adventure has finally ended. I felt like I went through it with them, you know? I just feel emotional about this. Is it dorky that I'm actually tearing up right now?

So join me in waiting for one last part. The epilogue. Thank you for reading.


	60. Epilogue: The Beginning

Pokémon World Online

Epilogue: The Beginning

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon, New York, etc etc. I own my ideas and such. Anyways, here's the end. It's a bit hard to write, but after this, I plan on going back through and doing a renovation of parts. I want to fix spelling, flow, etc, so if there were any things that bothered you about the story, please let me know. This part is dedicated to me because I've dedicated parts to everyone so far but myself.

ooo

Eskarine walked down the sidewalk wearing sunglasses to combat the sun above. She took note of people wearing her designs casually as she ignored people who stopped to stare at her. She walked past a newly opened restaurant in a familiar spot, trying very hard not to notice it, and up to a rather small shop compared to the buildings surrounding it. Out front were two people setting up red tulips by the shop window. A sign hanging above them stated that tulips were twenty percent off to celebrate their grand opening.

"Am I too early for the grand opening?" She called to the two. They turned and smiled at her.

"You're about a day early. We're still figuring out the best set up for when we open tomorrow." Twila grinned, setting a Tulip behind her to run over and give Eskarine a big hug; the sun glinting off of her silver bracelet. "We were thinking tulips because who doesn't like tulips?"

"I know they're a personal favorite of mine." Eskarine nodded. "It's good to see you actually out and about, though."

"I'm through with computers." Twila waved the statement away.

"Which is why she's typing furiously on it every night," Demetrius laughed.

"Hey, I can kick you out of my apartment any time." Twila glared. "Besides, someone has to rebuild PWO."

"I could go live in a dorm at the New York school, you know," Demetrius looked over at Twila playfully, who stuck her tongue out at him.

"Rebuild it?" Eskarine looked up at her sternly.

"Yeah, at the moment it's pretty much shut down. I'm trying to figure out how to get it back into running order and fix things so it will be open again for gamers," Twila explained.

"Is that really the wisest thing to do?" Eskarine asked, concerned.

Twila shrugged. "I don't plan on going evil, so I figure it can't hurt, plus Paul and I have been going through and fixing things so that nothing like what happened can ever happen again. We rewrote the program to only have 482 Pokémon and we're upgrading the system as we go. The servers are still running for now, so we're working as fast as we can so we can reopen it before they're shut down."

"Who's Paul?"

"Trellaine, that hacker," Twila explained. "Besides, someone has to combat that new rising MMORPG: World of Warcraft. I've heard that it's going to be the next big thing."

"Maybe it is time for another game to take the spotlight. No game will last forever," Demetrius commented.

"PWO meant so much to me and we did so much for it." Twila sighed, "I just can't say goodbye to everything."

"It brought us all together and we had so many great adventures, true. Don't get me wrong, I miss all my lovely items I worked too hard to collect...I really miss them...but sometimes you have to move on."Eskarine pondered for a second. "Anyways, I came to ask you guys out for a double date." She smiled.

"A date? Is Drix here, or whatever his real name is?" Demetrius looked up.

"No. We just decided that it was more a passion of the moment and have moved on. This isn't really a date, but I thought you guys might want to join me for showing a very special lady around the big apple." Eskarine motioned to someone who had been standing at the bus stop.

"Wait, is that..." Twila shielded her eyes from the sun over head and smiled. "No way!"

"You're okay!" Demetrius exclaimed joyfully.

"Hello everyone," a girl with long blonde hair waved to them shyly. "I thought I'd stop by while my family is here on vacation." Eskarine ran over and pulled her over to them.

"Emily!" Twila shouted, giving her a hug before pulling away quickly and clearing her throat with a blush. "I mean it's good to see you."

"Thanks Miss Pichu," she winked.

"So you were brought back to life?" Demetrius asked.

"Well after what happened, I felt like I was floating. I saw Lopunny was floating with me and I followed her. Next thing I know, I wake up surrounded by doctors and my mom and dad." Emily sighed. "I wish I could have said good bye to Lopunny."

"At least they're real now," Twila sighed as well.

"Yeah, Aura...I mean Eskarine explained everything to me. She found me and we've been talking and then my mom and dad have been talking about getting back together and taking a family vacation as a celebration, so I had to pick here." She smiled.

"So those were both your real parents when I picked you up?" Eskarine asked.

"They were!"

"I'm hungry," Twila complained. "Why don't you two help us put these tulips back up and lets hit the town. There's so much to do here, and don't we owe you a makeover?" Twila looked slyly at Aura.

"Yes we do. I plan on clothing you with only the best designs as well."

"Lemme guess; the best is all the things you made?" Twila joked.

"But of course," Eskarine laughed. The four of them walked off to enjoy a night on the town, laughing jovially.

ooo

Rick grumbled as he reached over to answer the phone. "Do you have any bloody idea what time it is?" He yelled.

"Yes, it's 3:34 am, but anyways, you have to get online." Paul's voice sounded excited. Rick groaned as he hung up and laid there for a second. If he didn't get on at that moment, then Paul would only call him again and again until he did get on. Rick finally urged himself out of bed and signed onto his instant messenger.

"Thank god you're on! Get on PWO right now," Paul attacked him as soon as he logged in.

"What? I thought it was gone." It was really too early for this.

"Of course not. Not until the servers shut down, which with most of the company out of commission at the moment, probably won't happen for a few weeks. Anyways, come on."

Guy grumbled as he booted up his game. When he logged on, his character was in the starting area. "What are we doing here?" Guy asked as he turned to Trellaine.

"The system always logs you on at this spot now since it's become so damaged. Anyways, I had to call you since out of everyone in the brotherhood; you're the only one with coding skills to match mine. Follow me!" Trellaine led the way as Guy trudged along behind him. Several Pokémon ran through the fields jerkily. Their programming seemed to be lacking something.

"Can you at least tell me what was so important that you had to wake me up at three in the morning?"

"It was 3:34. I suppose an explanation wouldn't hurt. I've been sorting through things here with Twilmer to see if this world is salvageable lately. She never stays on long, though, since she's got real life things to attend to. Well, I usually stay after she leaves and fiddle with things until I get tired and go to sleep myself, but tonight I found an anomaly right about...here." Trellaine stopped and the two of them faced an odd hole in the ground. Trellaine flashed a Chinchou lantern into the hole and hundreds of odd towers protruded from the bottomless depths.

"Didn't Twilmer mention something about this area having something to do with Dream? I thought when we defeated the glitch that we fixed stuff like this." Guy looked down at it.

"My guess is that Dream didn't cause a glitch, but rewrote data to include this area. Anyways, it's not the area that's interesting, but what's at the bottom." Trellaine pointed to a small spot of light. "That area has no data at all. My guess is because it's not data."

"If it's not data, then what is it?" Guy asked.

"Crobat has a good opinion of that." Trellaine pointed as a Crobat flew down to meet them. "This little guy has been fluttering around this area. I asked him if he could help me on a whim and he flew down there. From what I could gather, the area was described like a mirror with odd reflections."

"How did you gather that?" Guy raised an eyebrow. Trellaine pointed at a crude drawing made in the dirt. Crobat looked rather proud of it.

"Anyways, I need you to go down there with me so we can look at it up close." Trellaine motioned towards the hole.

"How are we going to get down there without dying?" Guy asked incredulously.

"Well, the system is busted and so my logic is that nothing much will happen. Come on!" Trellaine jumped down and Guy reluctantly followed. Sure enough, the fall didn't do anything. The two walked over to the hole and gasped. They saw the real Pokémon world. "It's a window into that world. I believe all three of the glitches, or rather the main ones, were here at the same time. It seems that those three combined could do what Satoshi wanted or something to that effect. That man was a genius and even I can't understand the full extent of his ploy. At any rate, I have a plan."

"I was afraid of that," Guy sighed.

"Well, I have some things to take care of here. You log out and call Twilmer. Tell her to call Aura so Aura can call Emily. I don't think Twilmer has Emily's number and I know Twilmer doesn't have hers, but she does have Aura's. Anyways, tongue twister aside, we need to get Emily down here pronto. Tell them to tell her to log on."

"Why? And why do I have to log out?"

"Emily has to say goodbye. You have to log out so you can be in the same area as her and lead her here. I'll IM you Twilmer's number." Guy considered Trellaine and then nodded, logging out. "Seems the old bugger learned to care after all," Trellaine chuckled to himself.

ooo

Twila was fast asleep beside Demetrius when the phone rang. "Holy Arceus!" She jumped awake, waking Helium in the process. "I wish Geoffrey could still do night runs to answer calls," she grumped as she answered the phone. "What do you want?"

"Aura's number," Rick's voice met her ears.

"Oh Guy! Why do you want her number?" Twila asked with a yawn.

"Because Emily needs a chance to say goodbye to Lopunny," He stated simply. Twila immediately gave him her number and pulled her robe on.

"Where are you going?" Demetrius yawned as he pulled on his pink bath robe. Twila always mentally face palmed at it.

"To log onto PWO," she answered, starting down the hall.

"At this hour?" he raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, somehow the men have found a way for Emily to say goodbye to Lopunny and I'll be damned if I won't be there for her. You get on your laptop if you want."

"Of course I do!" he exclaimed, running to the living room to grab his own helmet.

ooo

"Damn it," Eskarine growled as she was awakened by the phone ring. "What?" she yelled into the receiver.

"Hey, it's Guy. I got your number from Twilmer. Anyways, I need Emily's number."

"What the hell for, Guy?" She was far too sleepy to even bother wanting to know why.

"We found a way for her to say goodbye to Lopunny and I need her to log on."

Eskarine sighed, taking a deep breath. "I'll just tell her. She's spending the night here." She hung up the phone and walked to the couch where Emily was sleeping on the pull-out bed. "Emily, you awake?" she asked gently.

"Mmm, kinda. Who was on the phone?" she yawned; her voice heavy with sleep.

"That was Guy. He needs you to log on right away." Eskarine explained.

"Why?" She asked, turning over to go back to sleep.

"Just get on my computer right now." Eskarine pulled her up and led her over to the computer. "I can get on my neighbor's. I guess I should call Drix. We can make a reunion of this. I assume Twilmer and Helium will be on too." Aura grabbed her cell phone and walked over to her neighbor's door as Emily waited for the game to load, trying not to fall asleep.

ooo

"Hey Guy," Twilmer waved as she appeared beside him.

"What are you doing on?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Helium should be coming soon. I couldn't miss this, plus I missed all of us being on together, I have to admit," Twilmer said, suppressing a yawn. "Did you have to make this so late at night?"

"You should ask Trellaine that," Guy rolled his eyes.

"Hi guys!" Helium waved as he logged on.

Then Aura appeared. "Am I late this time?"

Drix appeared beside her. "It's too early for this."

Emily finally appeared. She looked around at everyone gathered. "Did you wake me for a reunion?" She asked.

"Nope, even better." Guy waved for everyone to follow him. They walked, chatting about how their life had been going since the events. Soon they arrived at the hole.

"This is where we fought Dream for the first time!" Emily exclaimed.

"Down here," Trellaine called up to them.

"Down there?" Aura raised an eyebrow.

"Yes. Some Crobat told him about something down there," Guy explained simply.

"A Crobat?" Emily looked up at the bat that was flying around the hole and smiled. "You evolved, Sunny!"

"Sunny?" Guy asked confused.

"It's a long story," Twilmer rolled her eyes. "Anyways, how are we supposed to go down there without dying?"

"The systems busted. It won't do anything." Guy jumped down and the others followed. He led them over to the hole. "So, did you find what you needed?" He asked, looking at Trellaine.

"Yep. I asked that Chansey and she said she'd be right over. Apparently she lives in the fields now."

"Chansey? What's going on?" Emily looked up confused.

"Lopunny?" Lopunny looked into the portal. Emily's mouth fell open and she began to cry, running over to talk to her partner.

"Just don't touch it. I'm not sure how this happened, but you know we can't let this game keep going. Everyone's too afraid since the whole 'if you play you die' pandemic spread, but we can't let people discover this." Trellaine looked at Twilmer.

"What if we just seal this hole off?" She asked franticly.

"It's still too risky. The worlds may be separate, but they are still too close due to what happened. I'm afraid the only surefire way to keep everything in balance and to prevent another power-hungry gaming executive from appearing is to put an end to PWO once and for all." Trellaine looked away.

"I guess I should have known all along. I just didn't want to give it up. I suppose tomorrow we should see to it that the proper people are contacted about shutting the servers down." Twilmer turned away from everyone, her voice shaky.

"Hey, don't worry," Helium hugged her.

"We can meet up for these weird little reunions at a much more decent time of day every now and then," Drix patted her on the back. Twilmer turned and looked at him. He cleared his throat and turned away with a blush.

"I'm still surprised this place is up anyways," Aura shrugged. "Besides, there will always be other MMORPGs."

"None like this one, but you are right. It's time to move on. I have a real life and I need to finally realize that." Twilmer sighed and looked over at Emily.

"Goodbye, Lopunny," she said, crying. Lopunny waved and bounded away. "Thank you, everyone, for this."

"I guess it's time for the final goodbye," Drix commented.

"Time to log out for good." Twilmer said with a small smile. Each of them logged out, save Trellaine. He made sure to seal the hole just in case before taking his own helmet off.

ooo

The End

It is June 30th 2:08 am and I am done with PWO. I just can't believe I wrote this, all of this. Thank you for reading this monster of a fic.

Final notes:

This was so much fun to write. The words always just seemed to flow out and only a few times did I have to stop and think.

The original RPG ended just when the party reached the real world for this fic. I want to say a thank you to that original group: Moya, Drix Sigar, Chiscringle, CreatorofDisaster, Gyrados, Guy Randamas, and myself. Without us, there would be no PWO fanfic.

I plan on going back and rewriting the majority of this fic now. I want to updated the spelling, expand on some things, and fix the first few chapters, plus make sure everything flows nicely. Most will be simple edits, but as this is the fic I am most proud of, I want it to be the best it can be.

Even though I would sometimes forget about this fic, or be overwhelmed with school work, even through the longest of hiatus', you guys stuck by me and that means a lot.

The most read part was the one with Aura's back-story and that was, at the time, the part I was most dissatisfied with. I just wanted to let the curious know that. Everything else is pretty widespread, except the hits on that page are about 10k now!

If you ever want to contact me for any reason, don't hesitate! You can find my email and such on my profile.

With that, thanks for reading. Man, it's going to be weird to not have to write this anymore.


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